The Wild Ones
by Artistia
Summary: Forced to leave her daughter when first changed, Rosalie goes back for Isabella, only to be told she is dead. What if little Bella was found and raised by a human drinking vampire? What changes will this bring in the lives of the Cullens, and, more importantly, the Denali sisters? ... Temporary Hiatus until I sort my life out...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I was bullied into this... Completely bullied into writing a Twilight story...**

**Story Summary: Forced to leave her daughter when first changed, Rosalie goes back for Isabella, only to be told she is dead. What if little Bella was found and raised by a human drinking vampire? What changes will this bring in the lives of the Cullens, and, more importantly, the Denali sisters?**

**Pairings: BellaxTanya, obviously. Others will be announced as characters are introduced**

**Dedicated to Mana Tatsumiya, the helpful bully**

**Review if you like the story so far.**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 1**

**New York-1931**

"Congratulations Miss Hale, it's a girl!" The midwife said, placing a squirming baby wrapped in a pink blanket in the young teenager's arms. 16-year-old Rosalie Hale looked down at her beautiful pink baby and smiled.

"A daughter," she murmured, brushing her finger on her baby's soft cheek, "She's perfect…"

"She's too small, it'll be lucky if she lives through the night," a voice from the doorway came.

Rosalie looked up and saw her mother in the doorway. "Mother how could you say such a thing, of course she'll live."

Mrs. Hale rolled her eyes, "I still can't believe you want to keep it, you're only 16! It's a good thing your father and I were able to keep this hushed up or else our social standing would've taken a hit for having a pregnant, unwed child." She would've continued but the baby started crying. "Well, if you're going to keep her, she needs fed, I think I can find a nursemaid for her," Rosalie's mother said.

"No mother," Rosalie replied, "I'm going to feed her and take care of her myself. There's no need to involve anyone else."

"Fine by me then," was the only response the older woman gave before leaving her daughter's room.

Rosalie watched her mother's retreating figure before looking back down at the beautiful baby in her arms. Her daughter opened her eyes and the most beautiful pair of deep blue eyes that she had ever seen greeted Rosalie. "I'll take care of you," Rosalie whispered to her daughter, "I'll always take care of you, my beautiful child, my beautiful Isabella…"

* * *

**2 years later- 1933**

**Bella: Age 2**

"So does Royce know about Isabella? I mean, you've arranged for us to marry so he must know I have a child right?" Rosalie asked her mother.

"No he doesn't know yet, we figured we'd break it to him closer to the wedding date, ease him into the idea," her mother replied, "Are you still going to see Vera tonight?"

Rosalie rolled her eyes as her mother change the subject, "Yes, will you be alright looking after Isabella?"

"Of course dear, now go on or you'll be late," Mrs. Hale shooed her daughter.

"I'm going, I'm going, just needed to say goodbye to Isabella," Rosalie replied, heading up the stairs to her room. Next to her bed was a crib set up with a sleeping toddler in it. Every month since the young girl had entered her life, Rosalie was happier than ever. She had always wanted to be a mother, and her little girl was the light of her life. "Isabella," she whispered, brushing the brown curls on the two-year-old's head.

The girl stirred and cried "Mama," when she saw her mother standing over her crib.

"Shush, go back to sleep baby, I'm going to visit a friend of mine, I'll be back later," Rosalie said despite knowing that her daughter didn't fully understand what she was saying. The blond cooed her brunette child back to sleep and kissed her head. "I'm going Mother," she said when she walked back downstairs, "I'll be back later."

**Later that night**

"It's done? Alright Royce… Yes, you'll be compensated, you won't get in trouble, alright, goodbye," Mrs. Hale said, hanging up the phone.

"It is done?" Her husband asked, walking into the room.

"It is, he said she was exactly where we said she would be."

Mr. Hale nodded, "So our disgrace of a daughter is gone, now what to we do with little Isabella up there?"

"I say we get rid of her. I mean, she can't exactly pass as our child with her dark hair, and people know that I haven't been pregnant in the past two years. And besides, she's nothing but a little bastard child. I'm still young enough to get pregnant again, we can start over with a different child," Mrs. Hale replied.

Mr. Hale felt a little unsettled at the thought of abandoning a child, but understood that it would hurt the reputation of his family if people found out his daughter given birth to a child. It cost a lot of money to keep the midwife quiet… "I agree, where shall we take her to get rid of her, I mean, I don't want the guilt of killing a child on my conscious."

"We'll drive her out to the edge of the city and dump her in between the city and the forest, get your car," Mrs. Hale ordered. She went upstairs and collected the sleeping child from the crib. In a momentary act of compassion, she wrapped Isabella in the blanket Rosalie had embroidered for her and picked up the stuffed bear that she slept with. Mrs. Hale placed on a large overcoat to cover the form of the small child in her arms and quickly rushed to her husband's car. "Drive," she hissed to him, "before she wakes up."

The two older adults drove to the edge of the city, stopping before entering a vast forest. Mrs. Hale got out and placed the girl on the ground, hidden behind a few bushes, out of sight of anyone who might see her. She placed the bear on the ground within reach of the little girl and hurried back to the car, not sparing a glance back at her young granddaughter.

The sound of the car speeding away was enough to wake the young girl. Isabella sleepily looked around and realized that she wasn't in her crib anymore, but a dark place. She clutched her bear to her and looked around for her mother. When her blue eyes failed to find the blond hair of her mother, she started to cry out for her. She cried for a while, before a rustle in the leaves scared her. Isabella started whimpering, clutching both her bear and baby blanket to her.

Suddenly a tall, red headed woman stepped into view, and she stared at the small child curled up under the bush shaking. The woman moved cautiously toward the girl, trying not to scare her and spoke quietly to her. "Shssh, it's alright little one, it's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," she spoke carefully. The young girl stopped shaking and just stared at the woman. She spoke to her like her mother, so Isabella quieted down and reached out towards her. The woman picked up the small toddler, with her blanket and bear in tow. "Hello little one," she whispered, a slight accent to her voice, "My name is Victoria, can you tell me your name?"

"Izabwella," she replied.

"Isabella?" Victoria interpreted. The toddler nodded her head. "Where is your mother?" Isabella shrugged. "Father?" The child shook her head. "Who brought you out here?"

"Gwamma, and Gwampa."

"Where did they go?"

"They weft," Isabella whimpered.

Victoria started to see red, that anyone would abandon a child out in the wilderness. She would've started growling if the young girl hadn't reached out and placed one of her hands on Victoria's face. Victoria instantly calmed down and started purring, comforting the child. She had heard of bonds instantly forming between vampires or even a vampire and a human, but didn't realize that it would happen this quickly. A bond forming between them could only cause the intense feelings of protectiveness and care that the young girl invoked within her.

"Isabella," Victoria said, causing the young girl to look at her, "I'm going to try to find where you come from, where your mother is. I run really fast, so I need you to press your face against my chest." She could tell that Isabella didn't really understand, so she just maneuvered her in her arms so that she was protected from the wind.

Victoria followed the very faint scent back to a fancy house in the higher end of town. Inside the house, she could hear a woman talking on a phone to someone named Royce, arranging a payment for him killing her daughter. The redhead growled slightly, realizing what had happened. The two people in the house, Isabella's grand parents, were so concerned about their social statuses that they hired their daughter's fiancé to kill her so people wouldn't find out that she had a baby. She flashed up to a window on the second floor that had Isabella's scent coming out of it. Victoria took a deep breath and caught a different scent; one close to the child's but a little different. _Her mother_, Victoria thought, _children tend to smell like their parents._

Little Isabella had fallen asleep on her chest so Victoria didn't have to worry about her seeing something she really shouldn't. The vampire followed the scent to where it ended in an alleyway. Victoria hissed at the scent of other vampires in the same place, and the faint traces of blood on the ground. Victoria was never more grateful for her gift of evasion, which eliminated her scent after she left an area, in case the vampire came back.

The child's mother was most likely found dying by a passing vampire and put out of her misery. Victoria now had a problem, what to do with the child currently cuddled on her chest? The bond that had formed between them, the one that tied her to this little girl, called to her to take care of the little girl, to be her… mother? That realization gave her a start; the bond between them was one of mother and child.

Victoria moved to shelter and gently nudged the girl in her arms awake. Isabella stirred and opened her blue eyes, and stared up into the red eyes of the woman holding her. "I'm not sure what happened to your mother little one," Victoria said, "But I'm going to take care of you. I'm going to be your mother now, and I'll always be there for you."

"Wewee?" Isabella asked, staring at the red haired woman with her large blue eyes.

"Yes, my beautiful Bella, I'll take care of you," Victoria whispered, kissing the young girl's head, "Always."

**3 days later**

Rosalie's eyes fluttered open to find 3 pairs of golden eyes staring at her. She jumped back away from them out of instinct, but realized she moved faster than normal. "What am I?" She whispered as she noticed each individual dust particle in the air, "Who are you people?"

"My name is Carlisle?" One of the men spoke, "I found you in an alley way dying and I bit you, changing you into one of my kind, a vampire. This is my wife Esme, and my first changeling, Edward."

"A vampire," Rosalie whispered, horrified, "How could you do this to me?"

Carlisle looked confused, "But you were dying, I had to save you."

"So you save everyone who's dying?"

"Well, no, but I thought maybe you would make a good companion for Edward," he said, motioning towards the bronze haired, broody boy standing next to Esme.

Before Edward could even speak, Rosalie shot the idea down, "I don't think so, broody boys aren't my type, why is my throat burning?"

Carlisle blinked before realizing what she just said, "Ah, you need to feed, we only feed from animals so if you follow us, we can show you how to hunt."

Rosalie followed them out of the house and found herself isolated in a forest. She smelled something mouth watering, but Edward grabbed her arm before she could take off after it.

"That's the smell of human blood," he sneered, "We drink from animals to keep from killing humans."

The blond nodded and followed the three vampires into the forest and quickly caught 3 deer, ripping their throats out and draining them completely. "What about my daughter?" Rosalie asked once she had cleaned up from her hunt.

Esme gasped and Carlisle stuttered, "Dau-daughter, what daughter?"

"I have a two-year-old daughter at home, are we going to go get her?"

Carlisle looked mournful and shook his head, "I'm sorry Rosalie, but you don't have enough self-control to be around someone so fragile as a child. I'm afraid you might drain her and never forgive yourself."

An overwhelming sadness crashed into Rosalie's heart and she found, in her new form, that she couldn't cry. She couldn't cry for her daughter, couldn't cry for what might have been with her, for all the moments she would miss. "When do you think I'll be able to see her again?" Rosalie cried, staring up at the man that just helped ruin her life.

"Five years, maybe longer," Carlisle said, reluctantly.

Rosalie took that time frame in and stared at the ground, pulling herself together. The other three just looked on in pity. "Alright so," Rosalie started, "I can't see my daughter for fear of killing her until I get control over my blood lust, that's basically what your saying." Carlisle nodded. "So I'm assuming we have to leave this city so that I won't be seen, before we leave, I have some things I have to do first."

"Like what?" Esme asked, speaking for the first time.

"Killing those bastards who beat and raped me, taking me from my daughter," and with those words, Rosalie disappeared out of the house before anyone could stop her.

**5 years later**

**Bella: Age 7**

"Mom, I've been meaning to ask you something for a few years now," a seven-year-old Isabella (Bella) Swan said to her red headed adoptive mother. She was standing near the couch where her mother sat, clutching her teddy bear in one hand and pulling at braids with the other, a sign that she was nervous about something.

"What's that Bella?" Victoria asked, putting the newspaper down. They had just recently moved to a new city in a single bedroom apartment. Victoria had job working at a local diner during the night shift and Bella went to the local public school.

"I need you to answer me seriously this time and the truth," Bella clarified before continuing on, "Why don't you look any different than when you first found me? Why is your skin so cold and why are your eyes red? Why do you sparkle in the sunlight?"

Victoria blinked and sighed, "Well those are a lot of questions… You really want to know?"

Bella nodded, stubbornly.

The older woman sighed again, "The explanation behind all of those things is that, well, I'm a vampire."

Bella blinked, "A what?"

"A vampire. I was turned into a vampire when I was 25. I was born in Ireland around the 16th century. I worked on a farm for most of my life, but shortly after my 25fth birthday I was out in the fields when a man with dirty long blond hair attack me and bit me. I started changing and he talked to me, telling me all sorts of… things about what he was, what I would be, and what he would do with me, none of them very nice."

"What did you do?" Bella asked, eyes wide.

"I woke up after three days of intense pain and my heart stopped. The man, James I had learned, was bending over me. Quicker than I imagined I could move, I killed him, ripping his head off and lighting him on fire using a flint and piece of steel like my father taught me how," Victoria answered, sparing no details.

"It's a good thing you got rid of him," Bella exclaimed, "or you never would've met me!"

Victoria smiled and held her arms open for the little girl who quickly ran into them, settling herself on her mother's lap. "That's right little one, I never would've met you. Anyway, ever since then, I've pretty much stayed away from other vampires, only running into the occasional nomad. My eyes are red because I drink human blood, I've heard tales of vampires that drink animal blood but-"

"They drink Snow White's friends!" Bella yelled, "How can they do that, the animals help her." Snow White had just come out to theaters so Victoria took Bella to see it when she saved up enough money. The country was still technically suffering from the Great Depression so money was tight, but since she only had to purchase enough food for Bella to eat, they had a little bit more than most. "What type of peo-people do you drink from mommy?" Bella asked hesitantly.

"Just bad people sweetie, people that try to hurt others," Victoria answered her, softly stroking her daughter's head.

"You mean like people that took my Mama from me?"

"Yes little one, like those people."

Bella nodded, feeling slightly sleepy from her mother stroking her hair. "Good," she murmured, "then they can't hurt people anymore."

Victoria hummed, slightly shocked at the opinion held by the young girl, but realized that she still held some pain and sadness from when Victoria told her about what she thinks happened to her mother. Not the part involving her grandparents, that would have to wait until she was older, but about her mother being attacked by ruffians.

"Mommy," Bella's voice broke Victoria out of her thoughts.

"Yes baby?"

"Am I gonna be a vampire like you one day?"

That question caused Victoria to freeze momentarily, her thoughts racing around her head. Did she want Bella to be a vampire? Would she have the strength to turn her, causing her intense pain? But if she didn't change Bella into a vampire, would she have the strength to let her go, live a human life and eventually die? The very thought caused her to shudder.

"Mommy?"

Victoria realized that she has been thinking too long. "What do you want baby?" She decided to ask.

"I want to be like you, I don't want to live without you, you're the only mother I have left," Bella cried, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The red head quickly shushed her daughter, wiping away her tears. "Don't worry baby," she soothed, "I'll change you, I'll change you, but when that will happen will be discussed at a later time. Now it's time for you little one to go to bed, I have to go to work."

"Must be nice," Bella said yawning, "not having to sleep."

Victoria smiled, "Well, it does give me more time, but I do miss it sometimes." She tucked the little girl in, kissing her on top of her head and giving one to her teddy bear too, their nightly ritual.

"Mhm, I love you mommy," Bella murmured, quickly falling asleep.

"I love you too baby," Victoria whispered, brushing the braids out of the little girl's hair. The vampire sighed as she watched the little girl sleep for a few minutes before checking the time on the clock. "Time for work, maybe I'll grab someone to eat before I go in though." Victoria grabbed her clothes and left the apartment, life couldn't get any better than this.

**Approximately same time: New York**

"So we can go see her now right? I mean, I haven't slipped at all and I have really good control right, so we can go see my little girl?" Rosalie asked, eyes pleading with Carlisle.

He looked hesitant for minute, before nodding his head. "Alright, we'll all go. It's night time so it should be safe."

Rosalie flashed the biggest smile any of them had ever seen from her and took off out the door. They were living in a grand house in northern New York. Rosalie begged to stay close enough so that she would be able to go to her daughter when the time was right. It didn't take anytime at all for the four vampires to run back to the city. Rosalie traced the steps back to her former home but stopped just short of it, a confused look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Esme asked.

"I don't… smell her," Rosalie said slowly, a disturbed look coming over her face. She climbed up the side of the house to look in the window of her old bedroom. The others followed her up and looked into the room; it was transformed into a paradise for a little girl. Toys and stuffed animals littered the room, and a giant canopy bed sat in the spot where Rosalie's bed once sat.

"Isn't that her?" Carlisle asked, referring to the blond head poking out from under the covers.

"N-no," Rosalie stuttered, "My daughter has brown hair, and would be over seven years old now. That girl in there is barely four." Anger crossed Rosalie's face as she started to growl lowly. "Where is my daughter?" She hissed, fingers leaving an imprint on the windowsill. She jumped down and raced inside before anyone could stop her, appearing in front of her startled mother. "Where is my daughter?" She repeated, growly at the older woman.

"Rosalie?" Mrs. Hale whispered, horrified, "H-how? We thought you were dead?"

"Where is SHE? I will not repeat myself again."

"S-she's gone," her mother stuttered hesitantly, slowly edging her body away from her.

"What do you mean gone?"

"You never came back! Your father and I didn't want to take care of your bastard daughter," she yelled, completely forgetting her fear. Rosalie growled and Mrs. Hale shrunk back, cowering. "Please don't hurt me, m-my daughter Rosaline needs me."

"My daughter needed her mother, needed her family," Rosalie hissed out.

"Please Rosalie please."

Rosalie just stared at her mother. "I'm not going to kill you," she said slowly, "because I don't want another girl to grow up without her mother." The blond glared one last time at her mother before disappearing out the door.

"That wasn't very smart Rosalie," Carlisle said once she was back outside. They all took off back to their house, Rosalie working out her aggression on the forest along the way.

"What was she thinking Edward?" Rosalie asked.

Edward looked hesitantly at Carlisle and Esme, before looking back at the irate blond. "I don't think you really want to know," Edward said carefully.

"I probably don't, but I have to know," Rosalie said.

The bronze haired teenager sighed, "Your mother and your father abandoned your daughter when you didn't come back. She didn't think about it long, but there was a flash. They took her to the woods, it's doubtful that she survived."

At his words, Rosalie broke down. "My baby," she gasped, "My beautiful baby." Esme hugged her while the other two watched on in pity as the normally icy vampire wept invisible tears for her lost daughter.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So I was completely shocked by all of the people who liked this story, I keep getting updates about them. To answer my reviewers who want Rosalie and Victoria together, I'm sorry, but they won't be mates. I've already picked one out for Victoria, but it has been requested that Rosalie should have a female mate, to that I promise I will think about it. I like Emmett so I'll have to find a way to split them up without hating on the guy, but that is way down the line. I'm still planning this story, so much is still in development.**

**Also, I'm skipping most of Bella's childhood growing up. Some things will be referenced or seen in flashbacks later, so I didn't want to have to repeat myself. **

**Review please**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 2**

**18 years later**

**Bella: Age 24/25**

"Are you sure your ready for this?" Victoria asked her soon to be 25-year-old daughter.

"Come on Vic, mom," Bella said, "We agreed that you would bite me at midnight on my 25fth birthday, the same age you were when you were turned. I want to be a vampire; I don't want to be without you. Plus you told me about the law of vampire kind, I have to either be changed or killed, let's do this and we can be together, always."

Victoria's eyes softened, "Alright baby, you remember what we discussed about."

Bella nodded, "You're going to bite me on the neck first, starting the change, then once on each wrist, and then on each ankle. Throughout the change you're going to keep talking to me to try and keep my mind off the pain."

The redhead nodded and looked at the clock. "It's almost time," she said, looking back at the brunette, "Any last words?"

"I love you mom," Bella breathed. She glanced at the time. "12:01, I'm ready."

Victoria nodded and bit down on her daughter's neck. To Bella's credit, she didn't flinch or shy away from the bite, nor did she scream out when the venom hit her system. Victoria remembered her own change was agonizingly painful, like fire racing through her system. She quickly bit down on the other places, making sure to pump as much venom in Bella's system as possible. Bella braved through it, only letting the occasional whimper escape her clamped lips.

The redhead watched the changes in her daughter as the days passed. Her skin paled considerably and her body toned. Bella's mahogany colored hair darkened a bit as red streaks began to appear, the same shade of red as Victoria's hair. Three days passed and Bella's heart was starting to give out. Victoria listened as it sped up and then eventually beat it's last.

Bella slowly opened her eyes and gasped as she saw each individual particle of dust dancing in front of her eyes. "Bella?" She heard her mother's voice and turned toward the sound.

"Wow," Bella breathed, "Mom I know you were beautiful but I never really understood how beautiful."

Victoria was shocked. Not by anything Bella said, but by the color of her daughter's eyes. They weren't the newborn vampire red she was expecting but a hypnotizing electric blue. "Bella, your eyes," Victoria said, reaching up slowly to touch Bella's face.

"What's wrong with my eyes?"

"They're… Blue?"

The brunette's eyes grew big and quickly rushed towards the bathroom. "Woah, head rush," Bella said, clutching her head between her hands.

The older vampire chuckled, walking up to her daughter. "It takes time to get used to the speed baby. Now look at yourself in the mirror, see what you look like now."

Bella looked up and gasped, "Wow, I'm as pale as you are, though why are my eyes still blue? Well, they're a different color blue than they were but I thought you said they would be red."

"I'm not sure," Victoria responded, perplexed, "Do you feel thirsty?"

"I don't know…" Bella replied, "I feel… something, but it isn't anything like what you described. I don't feel a fire in my throat, but more like an ache in my bones."

"An ache?" Victoria asked, confused.

Bella nodded, "Yeah, and I'm feeling a little on the sluggish side." The brunette blinked her eyes and put a hand to her head. "My eyes are starting to tingle a little; it's a weird feeling." Bella's eyes started to glow and seemed to crackle like a lightning bolt. When Victoria saw her daughter waver a minute, like she was going to fall, the redhead reached out and grabbed the brunette's hand. Victoria felt a small wave go through her as something left her body while Bella's eyes started to glow even brighter and hummed with energy.

Victoria released the newborn's hand and staggered for a moment before righting herself. "What was that?" She asked.

"Whatever it was, I don't feel achy or tired anymore," Bella sighed, her eyes back to their electric blue color.

"I think it might be part of your gift," Victoria murmured, "Remember how I told you some vampires have gifts?"

"Yeah, like you have the gift of evasion. What kind of gift would I have that means that I don't have to drink blood, because I don't feel even the slightest hunger for the stuff."

"I don't know," Victoria said thoughtfully, "But when I grabbed your hand, it felt like you took something from me, and whatever you took satisfied this ache that you felt."

"Yeah, and I didn't feel so tired anymore."

Victoria perked up, "That's right, you said you felt sluggish, what did it feel like?"

Bella shrugged, "It felt like I was really tired. Remember that time I ended up staying up for a few days during finals my senior year of college? It felt kind of like that, like I didn't have any energy."

"Maybe that's it," Victoria said, "Maybe you took my energy from me. As a vampire, I have an unlimited supply so it didn't really affect me very much. Maybe you feed off energy instead of blood."

Bella blinked, "That's weird, so I'm an energy vampire? Would I kill someone if I took a human's energy? This is all very confusing, why couldn't I just be a normal vampire and be trying to rip everything a part right now."

"Newborn's emotions are focused on very few things, mainly blood and sex. Since you clearly don't need to feed off of blood, you don't feel the blood lust to have it, and since blood lust fuels sexual lust for newborn vampires, you don't feel any of that either. The problem is that we don't know enough about your gift, what it is and what it can do, to determine whether your emotional status will change or how often you'll need to 'feed.'"

"Why don't we take it one day at a time?" Bella said, "And as for right now, my don't we go out and see how I'll react to scents and sounds outside of this cabin in the middle of the woods? Besides, you need to feed, it's been what? A month? Not counting the blood you drank from me of course."

"Yeah, it probably would be a good idea if I did feed, but are you sure you're going to be alright?" Victoria asked her daughter.

"We'll just have to see then," Bella said, slowly pulling on some different clothes. She pulled on a soft shirt and pair of pants, going for more for comfort than what was in style for women at the time.

The two left their cabin and headed for a larger town so that the redhead could find a criminal to snack on and Bella could test her new vampire senses. While Victoria hunted, Bella discovered that humans didn't smell any different to her than when she was a human, just stronger. Human food smelled the same to her as well because her mouth started to water at the smells wafting out of the back of a diner.

"I don't really want to test food right now though," Bella told her mother when she found her behind the diner, "While it does smell good, I don't want to risk it tasting horrible at the moment."

"So what do you want to do now that you've been changed?" Victoria asked, sitting down next to Bella on the edge of a building.

Bella thought for a moment before replying. "As much as living a life of seclusion from humans and other vampires sounds… interesting, I'd much rather go out and see the world at this point… Well as much as much of it as we can see on foot at the moment anyway."

"Still afraid of flying hmm?"

The brunette shuddered, "I remember when you got that job in the 40's working on planes for the war and stuff. I'd much rather wait until air travel has improved, and now that I'm a vampire, I can. We can always take a boat to another continent if you want to see Europe again. Didn't you say you wandered around Europe for awhile in the 1800's."

"Um, yeah, but I'm never taking an ocean liner again, well, not for a while at least."

"Why?" Bella was curious at this point. She had never heard her mother this against something in awhile.

"Two words: The Titanic. I was on it coming back to America from Europe, since it was much nicer than the cargo ship I was on going to Europe. You have no idea how long it took me to get out of the sinking part of the ship. Fortunately though there were plenty of people for me to snack on on the way out."

Bella blinked, "Why haven't I heard this story before?"

Victoria nervously scratched at her head, "Well that was before I was so selective in my eating habits."

"Ah, gotcha."

The sat for a few more minutes as night descended over the city, bathing the buildings in darkness. "Well," Victoria said, standing up, "Let's head back to the cabin, clean it up a bit, cover the furniture and everything."

"Maybe it would be prudent of you to invest some of the money we've saved up over the years, so that we have something to fall back on if we get tired of the nomadic vampire life."

"I'm not sure that I completely trust the stock market, but I guess the worst thing that could happen is that we lose the money. It's easy enough to replace if you're a vampire."

"Then what are we waiting for, let's go," Bella cried, "Race you back to the cabin!" The brunette took off with her mother hot on her heels.

With the aid of vampire speed, it didn't take the two much time at all to clean the house and cover all the furniture with sheets to protect them from dust and sunlight. The cabin was utilized as an old hunting lodge so it didn't have any water or electricity connections to worry about turning off. Bella pulled out some old boards that were stored in the basement to use for boarding up the doors and windows to keep hikers or unwanted visitors from wandering in uninvited.

"You know, just a suggestion, whenever we do come back here, probably be a good idea to update it, like install running water and electricity," Bella commented as they walked out of the cabin to board up the last door.

"Probably, but who knows what humans will come up with in 50 years or so, I mean, when I was human, people didn't think that'd man would ever fly, now they are. Who knows, maybe they'll even go to space one day."

"Oh mom, don't be silly," Bella laughed, "Why would they want to go to space? It's not like they can do anything out there other than look back down here."

Victoria simply rolled her eyes at her daughter and nailed a few boards across the door of the cabin. "Alright, where do you want to go?"

"South," Bella answered, "We've never really been south before, sticking to the northern states where it's cloudy all the time, or high populated cities where we were less likely to get noticed. Now I want to go south."

"South it is," Victoria agreed, running southward with her daughter.

"Who knows, maybe we'll meet some interesting people in the south."

**A few weeks later**

"So where are we now exactly?" Bella asked, standing straight and firm despite the blaring sunlight beating down on her.

Victoria glared ruefully at her daughter from her spot safely hidden in the shade of a large cactus. "I told you, somewhere in Texas I think," she huffed, irritated that Bella could stand out in the sun while she had to hide behind a cactus. They had discovered earlier that Bella didn't sparkle in the sunlight like other vampires, another product of her gift. It also became evident that if she stayed in the sun long enough, her skin would color slightly, so that she was no longer the deathly pale of a vampire.

"I thought you said that there were vampire wars or something happening down here," Bella said, "I don't see anything or anyone for miles. Though that probably means it's safe for you to come out from under that cactus."

"Not happening," Victoria replied stubbornly, "Sun down is in a couple hours; it's not like you can't wait."

Bella sighed and joined her mother near the prickly plant, slipping into a meditative state. She zoned in and out as she waited for the sun to go down before her mother felt comfortable enough to move again.

As soon as twilight hit, Bella's eyes popped open. "Can we go now?" Bella asked, looking over at her mother, her electric eyes glowing with excitement.

"Yes, we can go, though you should probably feed first," Victoria replied, holding out her hand for her daughter to take. They had figured out that, while different from a newborn, Bella still had to feed like one, very frequently.

The brunette grabbed the outstretched hand and her eyes started to glow as she felt a wave wash through her. The lethargy that started to creep into her bones disappeared and she released her mother's hand. "Ah, I feel better," Bella said, stretching a little.

Victoria smiled and stood up, "Good, now let's go, we can stop at one of the larger towns so that I can grab a snack before we head further down to Mexico."

They took off further south, stopping briefly in San Antonio for Victoria to grab a drunk or criminal to eat, and then continued running while it was still dark. Once they crossed the Mexican border, they caught the scent of multiple vampires, decades old. "This must be one of the remnants of the vampire wars," Victoria murmured, "The land around is deserted, good area for fighting, but I don't understand why the scents are so old, I heard the wars were a constant thing." Suddenly, Victoria's gift kicked in and she sensed someone was headed their way. "Bella get behind me, someone is coming."

Bella didn't argue with her mother, and stepped behind her. Soon enough, a short female vampire appeared in front of them. Her darker skin tone suggested that she was from Hispanic descent; her dark coffee colored hair was pulled back away from her face, and her red eyes stared at them suspiciously. "Who are you?" She asked in English, "What are you doing in my territory?"

"You're one of the southern war lords I presume?" Victoria asked, her gift telling her that she didn't have any reason to be afraid, yet.

"I am," the other vampire answered, "or really I was." She scrutinized the two vampires in front of her, "You two don't seem like a threat, merely passing through I'm assuming?"

"That's right," Victoria answered, "We're just traveling around, exploring. We were a little hesitant to come through here because of the wars but we didn't see any trace of them."

The shorter vampire sighed, "That's to be expected. Why don't the two of you come with me to my home and I'll explain things to you."

Bella and Victoria looked at each other before nodding, and began following the other vampire. A quick run at vampire speed and they soon came to a secluded beach with a small rustic bungalow sitting a bit back from the water. The beach was set in a tiny inlet that was surrounded by plants, rock formations and larger trees that kept the place well hidden.

"Come in, come in," the vampire said, "You don't have to be wary, it's just me here, has been for a few years."

"If you don't mind me asking," Bella spoke for the first time, "but who are you?"

"Oh right, I forgot, my name is Maria, and like you said," Maria said, referring to Victoria, "I was one of the warlords that fought over the southern territory."

"Oh, well, I'm Bella, and this is Victoria," the brunette said, motioning towards her mother.

"What happened?" Victoria asked, "How did the wars end?"

Maria sighed, "It's very simple really, we got tired, all of us warlords. We got tired of the constant fighting and training newborns, so we all pretty much just decided to stop and live out eternity in peace."

"What about your armies? What happened to them?" Victoria questioned, curious. Bella was curious as well. Her mother had told her that the wars were still going on and had been going on for a long time.

Maria looked down, ashamed, "That's probably the part I'm most ashamed about. When the other warlords and I decided to end the wars, we had the newborns fight each other until they were all dead. The older vampires who were out of their newborn phase were allowed the leave, but we agreed that the newborns were too numerous and dangerous to be allowed to go out in the world."

"Why are you ashamed of that?" Bella asked the vampire, moving to sit down next to her, "It sounds like you guys were just trying to erase the bad that you had done. Probably not the right way to go about things, but it was your only option. From what I know about newborn vampires, they are extremely hard to control."

Victoria rolled her eyes, "Says the vampire that just woke up less than a month ago."

Maria frowned and closely looked at the vampire next to her and gasped. "You are a strange vampire aren't you," she said, "How are you eyes blue, and how are you so calm if you're only a month old?"

"Part of my gift is the best we can figure," Bella replied, "I don't feed off of blood so I don't feel the frenzy that most newborns feel I guess."

"Fascinating," Maria breathed, then turned to Victoria, "What about you? How old are you?"

Victoria looked aghast, "Don't you know better than to ask a lady her age?" The three vampires in the room cracked up and giggled a little. It sounded like it had been the first time in a long time that Maria had laughed. "Anyway," Victoria continued, "I was changed in the 1500's when I was 25. I killed my maker when I woke up and have been pretty much been wandering ever since."

"Ah, so you're older than I am, physically and in vampire years," Maria said, "So how did the two of you meet? I'm assuming that you, Victoria, changed Bella."

"How we met is a bit complicated…" Victoria started.

Bella rolled her eyes, "Victoria is my mother. She found me after my grandparents had abandoned me after my real mother died, and she raised me. I asked her to change me when I was the same age she was when she was turned."

"Wow," Maria murmured, looking at the redhead with admiration, "Takes a lot of courage to raise a child, especially for a vampire. The type of control you have must be astounding."

"Age also helped a lot," Victoria replied sheepishly, "Now you know our story, what's yours? How did you become a warlord and how did it end?"

Maria dropped her eyes and looked away. "You really want to know?" She asked. When the other two nodded their heads, she began speaking again, "I was turned when I was 19, and I lived not to far from here with my coven, two males, one female. I loved one of the men very much; I thought he was my mate. One day, my coven was attacked and all but myself were killed. I became a warlord to get revenge," she finished quietly.

"What's a mate?" Bella asked after a moment.

Maria looked up in surprise and glanced over at the redhead who looked equally confused. "You mean you two don't know?" She asked. When they shook their heads, she sighed. "I guess living in seclusion from other vampires will do that to you. What do you know about bonds?"

"Well, I ran into a few nomads who were older than me during my travels," Victoria answered, "They told me about bonds that can form between vampires and even vampires and some special humans, that's how I recognized the bond forming between myself and Bella when we first met, but they didn't tell me anything about mates."

Maria nodded understandingly, "That's understandable. I didn't really know anything about mates until I saw a mated couple first bond." The short brunette fidgeted a little bit before starting up again, "Vampires have one true mate in the world, a soul mate if you prefer that term. The bond instantly forms when their eyes meet and they know that they've found their other half." Maria's eyes grew misty at this point, "I loved the man I was with, so I thought he was my mate, but during the wars, I saw a pair mate with each other and I realized that he wasn't my mate. It was at that point that I grew tired of the war. I realized that my mate was still out there in the world somewhere, and I didn't want to die in the wars without having a chance to met them."

"So how did you end the wars, really end them?" Bella asked, enthralled with the story.

"Well, my second in command, the Major, had formed a familial bond with the mated couple. Their newborn year was coming to an end, and the female didn't have a known gift at the time that would be useful for fighting. I didn't want them to die because I was grateful to them for showing me what a true mated vampire pair looks like," Maria continued, "so I tricked the Major, and let him think that I was going to kill the girl. He got the two of them out, and I, of course, punished him for it. I had used him to ease the loneliness of war, and he thought himself to be my mate. I had to break him out of that idea. Unfortunately, he was an empath, so it ended up breaking him. The mated couple came back for him and I haven't seen them since. Shortly after that, the other warlords and I met up, deciding to end the wars in secret. As far as the world knows, the wars are still going on so we are left alone." The Hispanic woman sighed, "So very alone…"

Bella looked over at Victoria, a question present in her eyes. Victoria nodded that it was okay. Bella leaned over and took the physically younger vampire in her arms. "You're not lonely now are you?" she asked, rubbing the Hispanic vampires back.

Maria smiled, "No, not anymore."

"Do you know what happened to the Major and the other two?" Victoria questioned.

"A little bit," Maria answered her, "I know that they became a coven, and the Major left them after a while. From what I've heard he found his mate and now lives with," Maria shuddered, "animal drinkers."

Victoria and Bella gasped. "An empath living with animals drinkers," Victoria murmured, "He must be an idiot. Animal drinkers lack the control that older vampires build up by drinking human blood."

"Yes, I don't know what happened to him once he left the war, but from everything I've heard, he's nothing more than a trained poodle now," Maria sighed, "I tried to find him and apologize, but he basically ordered me to keep my distance. I gave up and came back here. I only really go out to feed or purchase books to read." She motioned to the large collection of books she has surrounding her, "I don't really do much of anything else really."

"Well that's going to change starting now!" Bella cried, standing up. "Mom, we're staying here for a while with Maria."

"Bella you can't just invite yourself to stay at someone else's home," Victoria hissed, looking apologetically at Maria.

"No, no," Maria said vehemently, her almost unnoticeable Spanish accent more pronounced, "It's alright, I shall be quite glad for the company actually."

"There, it's settled, we're staying, at least for awhile."**  
**

* * *

**Review Please, longer reviews keep me inspired**

**Note: Bella is not changed in her teens for a reason. I personally would hate to repeat high school over and over again, but also it'll be a point of tension between Bella and Rosalie when they meet back up again. Bella is technically older than her bio mom, and it'll also keep the Carlisle and Esme from pulling their parent routine. I was always freaked out by the weird family dynamic they had, it was deeply disturbing to me**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Again, completely shocked by how many people are reading this story. To my guest reviewers who asked questions or left comments. Pam, I think, expressed disappointed that Bella didn't meet Rosalie before she was changed. I did this deliberately. I want them to be on pretty even footing when they do meet up with each other especially since they'll be getting off on the wrong foot (so much drama in store). **

**And to my other one, I'm sorry that my story doesn't meet up with your standard, but this is my story. I know all of the "official" backgrounds of the characters, I looked all of them up before I started, but I changed some of them to suit my purposes.**

**Oh, and before anyone asks, this isn't one of those fics where Bella has multiple powers, she doesn't. She has one power, that has different facets to it. **

**The next chapter isn't written yet, so this one will have to sustain you for a week or two**

**Review please, nothing is really edited so please ignore mistakes. I just use spell check and that doesn't catch everything**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 3**

**3 Years Later**

"Are you sure you two want to leave?" Maria asked Bella and Victoria. The three vampires had become fast friends; a bond formed between them. It wasn't a complete coven bond, but it was strong enough to make them really good friends, almost like sisters.

"Do we want to leave, no, do we need to leave, yes," Victoria answered.

"Maria we love you and we like living here with you," Bella started, "But there's still so much of the world that I want to see, so many vampires that I want to meet. Plus, if we stay here, we'll never meet our mates, don't you want to meet your mate Maria?" Bella asked the Hispanic vampire.

Maria sighed, "Si senorita."

"Then why don't you come with us," Bella implored, her electric blue eyes swirling with hints of crimson red. About a week after Victoria and Bella started living with Maria in her bungalow, the brunette vampire started to feel extremely anxious and moody. Taking energy didn't ease the mood swings so Maria suggested that she try to drink blood. Victoria took Bella hunting and the brunette sucked a few drug dealers dry. Once she finished drinking, she instantly felt better and blood red spots appeared in her blue eyes.

_"Well I guess that answers the question of whether you still need to drink blood or not," Victoria said when Bella finished, "The blood probably helps moderate your gift."_

_ "I guess so," Bella replied, "But I am not, under any circumstances, drinking animal blood." _

"I'm not ready yet," Maria said quietly, head hung low, "I'm still known through the world as a ruthless warlord. I'm not ready to face society yet."

Bella's face crumpled and venom tears pooled in her eyes, never able to fall.

"Whenever you are ready to get back out in the world," Victoria said, "You can always find us. We'll be there for you."

"Gracias," Maria replied, "Now as a suggestion of where you should go next, I would head down to South America. I heard stories of an ancient coven that lives in the rainforest. They're supposedly wild women, the ones that the Amazonian warrior myths were based off of, you should see if you can find them. If they're as old as the rumors say, maybe they can help you figure out your gift, both of yours' gifts," Maria said, motioning between Bella and Victoria.

"Thank you Maria," Victoria said, "We will miss you. We'll stop in for a visit when we travel back through, though I'm not sure when that's going to be."

"I'll be here, ciao mi amigas," Maria's words were carried on the wind as Bella and Victoria raced south.

"How long do you think it'll take to get to the Amazon?" Bella asked her mother as they ran over the land.

"At this speed? Probably a few hours," Victoria answered, "Are you good on energy?"

"Yeah, I fed from Maria before we left while you were out hunting."

"What about blood?"

"Went out with Maria a few days ago, picked up a homeless man."

Victoria hummed, and they continued running. After a few hours, they had crossed into South America and were approaching the rainforest. "We should slow down," the redhead commented, "We're entering another vampire coven's territory so we should be respectful."

"Do you think they'll talk to us?"

"I don't know, they're supposed to be really old vampires. They don't _have_ to do anything."

They wandered around the jungle for a while; climbing trees and peeking out over the canopy, they watched the sun begin to peek over the horizon. When they dropped back down to the forest floor, Victoria sensed a presence nearby. "Be wary Bella," she said, "someone is near here." Unexpectedly, her eyesight blacked out and she flailed around in fright, not understanding what was happening.

"Mom, Vic, what's wrong?" Bella asked wondering why her mother was thrashing around looking or her when she was right next to her.

Suddenly, three vampires dropped out of the trees in front of her and Bella gasped in surprise when she saw them. The were the fiercest, wildest looking vampires she had ever seen, which doesn't mean much since technically she's only seen two vampires other than herself. Their skin was dark, indicating their native roots, and their hair was pitch black, blending into the darkness of the jungle. They wore animal skins and feathers that barely covered their breasts and private areas.

The vampire in middle stepped towards Bella with a guardedly curious expression on her face. "How can you still see?" She asked in heavily accented English.

"Excuse me?" Bella replied, not understanding what was going on, but assuming that the three wild vampires in front of her were the fabled Amazon coven.

"How can you still see?" The vampire repeated, "I sent an illusion to have you only see darkness."

"So you're the reason I can't see," Victoria said, glaring in the general direction of the ancient vampires, "Can you please give me my sight back?"

The vampire briefly flicked her eyes towards the red haired vampire and Victoria's eyesight came back. "Now why are you here?" The vampire asked, staring at the two unknown's in front of her.

"We're nomads," Victoria answered, "We've just recently started to interact with other vampires. A friend of ours, well our sister really, told us about an ancient coven of vampires that lived in the rainforest that might be able to help us hone are gifts and teach us more about vampire instincts and such."

"Who is your sister?" One of the other vampires asked in equally accented English. This vampire stepped forward in front of the other ones, indicating that she was the coven leader among them.

"Her name is Maria," Bella supplied.

"The warlord?" The leader inquired.

"Former warlord," Bella clarified.

The three Amazonians conferred quietly for a few minutes before looking back at the two American nomads. "Follow us to our current home and we will sort this out," the lead vampire said, "I am called Kachiri, and these are my coven mates Zafrina and Senna."

"I am Victoria, and this is my daughter Bella," Victoria introduced them to the Amazonians.

"Daughter," Kachiri murmured, surprised, "It seems we have much to discuss. Follow."

Bella and Victoria swiftly followed the Amazonians through the jungle. While to normal eyes it would appear that they were aimlessly wandering, their vampire eyes detected the faint pathway marked out through the underbrush and trees. Coming through the trees, they reached a small, slightly overgrown, clearing. In the center of the clearing sat the remains of an old temple, probably once used by the long gone civilizations of South America.

"This is where you live?" Bella asked as they stopped in front of the crumbling temple.

"Yes," Kachiri replied, "Normally we do not bring strangers here, but if Maria has vouched for you, then that is enough." They made their way inside one of the rooms inside the temple and found various cloths and furs scattered around. The Amazonians sat down on some of the furs and Kachiri gestured that Bella and Victoria should do the same.

"You know Maria?" Victoria spoke, sitting down on the tanned animal skin.

The three Amazonians nodded their heads. "She is our friend," Zafrina, the one who first spoke to them, replied, "We met her years ago, after she retired from being a warlord. When she meets other vampires that she feels that we should meet, she tells them about rumors of ancient vampires that live in the jungle and then sends them down here."

The two American nomads looked shocked. "She's definitely a sneaky one mom," Bella murmured to her mother, "and when we pass through Mexico again, I'm gonna give her a piece of my mind."

A peculiar expression crossed Kachiri's face that puzzled the other vampires until they realized that she was smothering back laughter. "We shall tell you about ourselves," Kachiri said once she got control of herself, "and then you will tell us about yourselves yes?" When Bella and Victoria nodded, Kachiri continued on with her story, "I was born long ago, the exact number of years I know not, but it is well over a thousand, probably over two, I'm not sure. I lived in a village that was just outside of the capital city of our people; Senna and Zafrina were my best friends. I was turned accidentally in my 21st year. My maker was a European vampire who swam across the ocean and fashioned himself into a god of our people. He demanded blood sacrifices be made to him and so once every few weeks, someone was chosen from the villages. The lot fell to me when it was my village's turn to provide tribute. When he realized he had turned me instead of killing me, he made sure to inform me about vampires and was going to keep me as his sex slave. Fortunately for me but unfortunately for him, he was quite stupid and ignorant of the way of our people since he was an outsider." The truly ancient vampire's eyes crinkled a little, "I will never forget the day he died. It was a few years after my change, so I was getting better control over the bloodlust. Our people had a ceremony where they would worship the gods at the top of a volcano. When asked if he would like to be reaffirmed as a god, my maker stupidly answered yes. The villagers pushed him into the volcano to prove is godhood, and poof, he was gone. Everyone assumed that he had chosen to return to the heavens, but I knew what really happened. I was hiding in the trees and saw the whole thing."

The ancient paused before continuing, "I was greatly relieved as I could return to my village and my friends. I found Senna and Zafrina one day when they were out in the jungle looking for food. I had told them what had happened and what I had become-"

"You didn't feel hunger for their blood?" Victoria interrupted.

Kachiri shook her head, "No, I had fed before I got to my village so that I wouldn't hurt them. My friends and family lived there and I couldn't take the risk that I would hurt someone. Anyway, as I was saying, I told them what I had become and they instantly asked to be turned as well."

"That's kind of what happened with my Mom and I," Bella said, smiling at Victoria.

Senna cleared her throat and spoke for the first time. Her voice had a gravely sound to it, like she didn't speak much, but her English was perfect. "It was decided that Zafrina would be changed first so that Kachiri wouldn't have to deal with two newborns at the same time. After she got through her year, they came back and Kachiri changed me as well. It was when I awoke that we discovered something else about vampires that Kachiri's maker merely glossed over: vampire mating."

Victoria gasped while Bella leaned forward eagerly, eying Zafrina and Senna's joined hands. "You two are mates?" She squealed, "I've never met a mated couple before, Mom hasn't either. We just learned about them from Maria."

"Yes we are mates," Senna confirmed, "After all this time together, it feels as if we are one person."

"These two were quite a handful, going through their newly mated phase," Kachiri said, "but we've basically been together ever since."

They sat in silence for a few minutes while Bella and Victoria processed the information presented to them. Zafrina spoke, breaking the silence. "We told you our story, would you care to tell us yours now?" She asked.

Victoria began, telling how she was born in Ireland around the turn of the 16th century, and changed when she was 25. She related some of her stories from her travels, and how she chose to live in hiding from vampires for so long because she didn't want to be bothered. The red head then told the ancient vampires about finding Bella abandoned in the woods and instantly feeling a bond forming between them. Said brunette then took up the story herself, narrating her life growing up moving around because of her vampire guardian and then finally to her change a few years earlier when she turned 25.

"One thing I'm wondering though," Bella said when they finished with the story, "Is why you didn't realize that Senna was your mate the first time you saw her? You said you two only realized that you were mates after she had awakened from the change."

"That young one," Zafrina said, smiling at the brunette, "Is an excellent question that took us many years to understand, but being as old as we are, we have learned things about being vampires that many do not yet know."

"Stop beating around the bush Zafrina," Senna quipped before turning to the younger vampires. "It is impossible for vampires to form a mating bond with a human, any who believe they have are just plain stupid. I'm not saying that a bond can't rise up between a vampire and a human, yourselves being prime examples of that, but a mating bond can never be formed, it can only take place between two vampires."

"Why?" Victoria asked, intrigued.

"A vampire can never hurt their mate," Kachiri interjected, "and humans are our natural food source. As we get older, our control gets better, but there is always that temptation. And besides, the vampire would be unable to change the human if a mating bond a formed. The change is very painful, so the vampire would be unable to inject their venom into their mate, but at the same time, the territorial instincts of vampires would not allow for anyone else to change their mate."

Victoria thought for a moment, "I guess that does make sense, not like I know any different anyway."

Bella nodded her head before she sat straight up. "Oh I just remembered," she said, scrutinizing Zafrina, "What was that thing you did to my Mom out in the forest?"

The older vampire laughed, "I wondered if you would ever ask about that. It is my gift. I can make others see illusions, anything that I desire them to see really." Zafrina looked at Bella appraisingly, "It did not work on you though, tell me, what are your gifts? I believe that is part of the reason you mentioned that Maria sent you down her for, and you are probably one of the strangest vampires I have ever seen. Your skin does not shine when the sunlight strikes it like other vampires, and your eyes are not any color I've ever seen for vampire's eyes, a strange mixture between blue and red."

"You forget about that one crazy vampire that passed through here years ago," Kachiri commented, "He had murky blue eyes, not from a gift though. The poor man was a fisherman in his human life, and it was the only thing he knew how to do. After he was changed into a vampire, he continued to feed from fish, drinking their blood instead of eating them. I think that drove him crazy after a while; he swam into an underwater volcano looking for fish."

"That is the weirdest story I've ever heard," Victoria said, still processing what the ancient vampire said.

The two pale skinned vampires stared at the ancients in disbelief. "We don't really know what my gift is," Bella said, diverting the conversation back to what the original topic was, "Or everything it can do. I think that maybe that's why Maria sent us down here, so that we can work on it."

"And do you have a gift?" Kachiri asked Victoria suddenly.

"Evasion," the red haired vampire replied, "I can usually sense trouble and I can figure out how to avoid it or get out of tight spots. Always helped when people started to get nosy when Bella was growing up. I would get an inkling that it was time to leave, and would pack up without hesitation."

"Interesting, very interesting," Zafrina murmured before turning her attention back to Bella, "I would like to explore your gift some more. Would you tell me what you know about it?"

Bella blinked, an odd habit for a vampire, but one she carried over from her human years. "Well," she started, "like you said, I don't sparkle in the sunlight, my skin actually tans a little in intense prolonged exposure human food doesn't smell foul to me, it doesn't smell as good as it did but not foul anyway, and I don't have to feed on blood as often as normal vampires do. I sustain myself on energy until I need to feed, which is usually only every few months. The blue color of my eyes indicate the energy feeding and the red the blood."

"Energy?" Zafrina asked, mystified.

The red-streaked brunette nodded, "Yup, I've actually taken energy occasionally from the humans I feed off of, though it doesn't last as long as the energy I take from other vampires."

"Since we have unlimited energy it doesn't really hurt us," Victoria supplied, "It feels a little weird, like a wave, but it's not unpleasant."

"Fascinating," Kachiri murmured, "Can you try it on me?"

"Eh," Bella hummed, "I fed right before we left Maria's so I really don't need to feed again. I try to only feed when I need to."

"What does it feel like when you need to take in… energy?" Senna asked.

Bella tugged at her hair, "I start to feel tired, and… achy I guess, like a soreness in my bones. My eyes start to glow when I need to feed and they glow brighter while I'm taking in energy."

"What about when you hunger for blood?"

"About the same as any vampire, restless, jumpy, angry."

Zafrina looked thoughtful for a few minutes, "I imagine that the energy you take in forms some type of shield that protects your body and mind." The ancient shrugged, "I'm sorry, living in the jungle for several thousand years doesn't make us an expert on the matters of energy."

"What if I do have some type of shield?" Bella asked, "Would you be willing to help me with it?"

"Of course," Kachiri said, "We will help both of you train your gifts, and learn how to fight of course. You will stay here and live with us. We only have a few rules for vampires who enter our territory: you must travel to one of the larger towns to feed, and you may not, under any circumstances, feed off of animals while you were here. If you find poachers or pushy loggers in the forest, you may feed off of them as well. We try not to eat many of the native tribes that also call the forest their homes."

The two younger vampires nodded. "I love animals," Bella said, "I was actually in school learning how to take care of animals. I worked at an animal shelter until it was time for me to be changed. I would never drink from animals."

"I have taught Bella to be selective when she needs to feed from humans," Victoria said, "By your insistence, I'm assuming you have had a run in with animal drinkers."

Kachiri rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Yes," she spat, "One came to us years ago, before we met Maria. He was fair haired and seemed like an honorable sort of vampire. We made him promise only to feed when absolutely necessary and never feed off of the same animal as many in this forest are rare." Anger started to rise in her voice and she was unable to continue.

Zafrina picked up the story where her maker left off, "What he did not tell us was that since he fed off of animals, his control was lacking and his thirst was great. He had to feed every few days to manage his thirst. He nearly wiped out an entire species while he was here. Ever since, we have held a great distain for animal drinkers, believing them to be the weakest of all vampires."

"That's horrible," Victoria gasped, "Who was this vampire? So we can know if we ever run into him."

"Cullen something or other wasn't it, Senna, Zafrina?" Kachiri asked, looking at her sisters.

"Yes, it was Cullen something, and if I recall correctly, he wasn't exactly thrilled about mating bond," Senna replied, "He claimed to have spent time with the Volturi, and yet he was completely ignorant to vampires basic instincts, especially mating and bonds."

"We have heard that he has started a coven to follow his beliefs, but we do not know how many he has," Zafrina said, "I almost ripped him apart for the way he looked at my mate and I when he found out about our bond. I may not hesitate the next time I run across an animal drinker, it will indicate that he has influenced them."

"Another bad thing about drinking from animals is that since the vampires are denying themselves of their natural food source, their instincts are dulled, including the mating pull," Senna said.

"Enough of the serious talk," Kachiri interjected, "We will show you around this temple where we live, which used to be a one of the temples of our people, and then we will show you around the jungle."

"First we have to give you something else to wear," Senna replied, standing up and moving to another room. She flashed back and was holding leather loincloths similar to what the Amazons were wearing.

Bella squealed when she saw them, "Yes! Finally! Non-restrictive clothing!" The brunette quickly got up and rushed over to where the ancient vampire stood. "We get to wear these yes?" Bella asked, eying the dark leathers.

"Yes," Senna replied, chuckling, "It'll help you blend in better with the forest. Since you do not sparkle in the sunlight, it makes it even better." Bella squealed again and rushed out of the room, pulling the ancient with her to show her how to put on the scraps of clothing.

"It's amazing," Zafrina murmured as the other vampires in the room watched the two depart.

"What?" Victoria asked.

"Senna is normally very quiet," Zafrina replied. "She rarely leaves my side, but around Bella…" the older vampire smiled softly, "she becomes a whole new vampire, so open and almost carefree. A bond is forming between them already."

Victoria smiled, "Well then, we better stick around for a while; we have to see where the bond goes."

Kachiri stood up and placed her hand on Victoria's shoulder. "That we do," she said to the redhead, "That we do."

* * *

**Review Please, longer reviews keep me inspired**

**So, since Bella and Victoria both dislike animal drinkers, and are having that belief reinforced by such an ancient coven, how do you think they'll react to the Denali's? Or Bella to her Bio Mom... Food for thought**

**Note: I know how the Amazonian vampires looked in Breaking Dawn. I looked up the pictures and watched clips of the movie to see how they were portrayed. They're described as intensely wild vampires, which didn't go well with how they were shown. I have them wearing scraps of leather for clothes because that fits my definition of wild, forest dwelling vampires. I also gave them a back story because the only information on them is that they were all friends and that Kachiri changed them. I thought the story was amusing**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks for waiting, I've been on vacation, and this chapter was longer than I thought it would be. We are really starting to cross into unknown territory here. Of course, I didn't realize how few vampires their actually were in the Twilight universe. I'm not including Nahuel or any of those ones in this story. Vampire/Human hybrids don't exist here. Covens that I've planned on them meeting, obviously the Amazons, The Egyptian coven, and the Irish. They won't encounter the Volturi for a while, and I'm not having them meet the Romanians. Nomads will be determined on if I need another vampire or not.**

**I send a thank you to all my reviewers, and please enjoy this chapter, next one will come next weekend probably.**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 4**

**20 Years Later**

"Mom, do you get the feeling that maybe we should leave?" Bella asked. She was sitting on a tree branch high about the ground, staring at the vast amount of stars blanketing the sky.

Victoria looked over at her daughter from where she sat on a branch on the other side of the tree. They both were wearing the typical animal skins of the Amazonian coven, decorated with their own feathers and furs. Symbols and bands were painted on their faces with paints mixed from natural pigments found in the forest. "Do you want to leave?" Victoria asked, "I thought you liked staying here with Kachiri, Senna and Zafrina. I mean, they're our sisters, our coven, don't you want to stay?"

"I do love staying here," Bella replied, thinking back to the moment when the Amazonians officially welcomed them into their coven.

_Flashback_

_ It was a few years after Victoria and Bella first arrived in the rainforest, and they had no thought to leave at all. They loved living in the forest with the Amazons, exploring territory that no one had ever explored before. _

_ Kachiri began helping Victoria train her gift, her enhanced survival instincts. She also taught the redhead all she knew about vampires, how they behaved and how they changed as they aged. The leader of the Amazonian coven revealed that since they were so old, the Amazonians only had to feed two or three times a year and did not have any problems with their thirst. The two grew closer together, as close as any of the Amazons were._

_ While Kachiri was working with Victoria, Zafrina was helping Bella develop her gift and discover its different facets. They discovered that she did indeed have a shield that pulsed with energy when in it's physical form. If she extended it over something it became electrified with a static charge. While Bella and Zafrina grew closer, the brunette also became close to Senna. She brought the normally quiet vampire out of her shell and soon Senna began to leave Zafrina's side more and more to explore the forest with the two younger vampires. Zafrina was pleased with how taken her mate was with the youngest vampire among them._

_ Eventually, the Amazons taught them how to make the leather clothes that they wear, catching the animals and tanning their skins. They would only hunt them sparingly, choosing animals that were more abundant in nature, or were sick and dying; they would then leave the carcass somewhere where predators could find it. _

_ After Bella and Victoria had successfully crafted their own clothes, decorating them with feathers and other trinkets found in the forest, the Amazonians officially inducted them into their coven. They didn't have a crest to give them, but they painted the younger vampires' faces with symbols that represented their status as coven mates._

_ Victoria and Bella looked at their new sisters with love and joy. "Thank you," Bella whispered, "Thank you."_

_End Flashback_

"Bella?" Victoria said, breaking Bella out of her thoughts.

"Hmm, oh right, I just feel like there's so much out in this world that we haven't seen," Bella replied, still staring up at the stars, "I could just be feeling restless because we've never stayed in a place as long as we have here, but I don't know. It feels like we might miss out on something great if we stay here. Plus, I miss Maria."

Victoria nodded her head understandingly, "You did have a close bond with Maria as well, I can understand you missing her, and as for being restless, I understand about that as well. We set out on this journey to meet other vampires, and we found more than that, a family; a coven that we have been welcomed into with open arms."

"And that makes this even harder," Bella responded with a sigh.

They sat in silence for a minute before Victoria spoke again. "Well then," she said, "I guess we have no choice but to leave."

"Really mom?" Bella was surprised.

"Yes," Victoria confirmed, "Truthfully I've been feeling restless as well, but I know you love living here in the forest with our coven and I didn't want to leave without you."

"No matter who else we're around," Bella said, reaching out for her mother, "It's always been you and me together, and we always will be."

Victoria chuckled, "If ever we do find our mates, they're going to be in trouble aren't they. Though yours will have to get through me first, a mother's prerogative."

Bella smiled, "Same with you mom."

Victoria jumped down from the tree, landing lightly on the forest floor. Her daughter followed her down soon after. "I guess we should tell our sisters our decision," the redhead murmured, staring off in the direction of their home.

The brunette nodded and they took off toward the temple that had been their home for the past couple decades. Zafrina, Senna and Kachiri were there waiting for them when they came back. "You're leaving," Kachiri stated, drawing gasps from the other two vampires.

"You can't be leaving," Senna cried, rushing towards Bella, grabbing her hands, "You can't leave us."

"I'm sorry 'Ena," Bell murmured. Zafrina approached behind her mate and Bella looked up at her. "You too Zaf," she said, "I love living here with you guys, but I want to see places I only learned about in school, meet other vampires and stuff."

"You two lived outside of this forest before," Zafrina replied sadly, "It's only natural that you would feel restless staying here. This forest is all we've ever known. It's our home, we love living her, but you guys have lived elsewhere."

"You have a desire to see the rest of the world," Kachiri continued on for her coven mate, "One that we satisfied long ago."

Senna looked at the younger brunette vampire sadly and embraced her. "I'm going to miss you Bella," she said, her accent thick due to her emotions. The other two ancient vampires joined in the hug embracing the youngest vampire of their coven. Victoria looked on sadly; venom tears present in her own eyes. When they had first come to the Amazon coven, they weren't as physical with their emotions. However, Bella brought them out of their shells, so while they were still wild and fierce vampires, they were very loving and affection with those they called family.

Suddenly, Victoria's gift alerted her to an approaching vampire. "Guys, there's a vampire coming," she said, breaking the group hug apart.

"Are they dangerous?" Kachiri asked, heading over to stand next to her coven mate and pupil. While Kachiri didn't have a gift per say, she was highly attuned with her surroundings and nature from all of her time living in the forest. Through her tutelage, Victoria developed her gift even more so that she doesn't just sense when danger or something is coming, she can identify it. She can also sense and identify danger to other species, which is good for hunting her preferred diet of criminals. The Amazonian's also used this aspect of her ability to find traps left in the forest by poachers.

"No," Victoria said, "They seem to know where they're going, how many vampires know of this temple?"

"Only those few we call friends," Zafrina responded. They hid themselves among the rocks surrounding the temple, and Bella stretched her shield out over her coven mates, blocking their skin from the sun's rays so they didn't sparkle. They were alerted to its presence over them by the tingling sensation that accompanied her shield.

Zafrina took it as her responsibility to work with Bella on gift, discovering exactly what it could do. They found that Bella had a skin tight physical shield wrapped around her constantly which is what kept her from sparkling in the sunlight and even allowed her to tan a little. Her shield seemed to be crafted out of energy, and is probably why she has to feed off of energy more than she does blood. Zafrina was surprised that when Bella stretched out her shield over other things that it did not form a dome like other physical shields she has known, but conforms to the shape of whatever is wrapped in it.

They heard the vampire draw closer and the footsteps slowed down as the visitor approached the clearing. When Maria walked out of the tree line, Bella jumped up and tackled the Hispanic vampire. "Maria!" She cried, hugging her, "We've missed you, we were just getting ready to come and see you."

The shorter vampire laughed and hugged her friend before releasing her and stepping back to look at the rest of the Amazonian coven. "When you guys never came back through, I figured you had stayed down here. I decided it was time to leave my little hovel, so I headed down to see if you were still here," she said, looking between Victoria and Bella.

"It is good to see you again Maria," Kachiri said, "You look like you're doing better than you were right after the wars."

"I am feeling better," the Hispanic vampire replied, "I decided it was time to stop moping. I mean, I have three very good friends and two sisters who don't care who I used to be, so it was time for me to get over my own sorrows. I used to be a warlord! No one can mess with me."

"Yay Maria!" Bella cheered, "You should come with us."

"Where are you going?"

"Anywhere we want," Victoria answered, "We're vampires, we have the ability to see the world, so we're going to."

"You wouldn't mind if I come?" Maria asked.

"Of course not, we're family," Bella replied.

"Then of course I will come with you," the shorter vampire said, "Now, can you tell me why none of you are sparkling?"

"Whoops," Bella said, "I guess I forgot to pull my shield back." She pulled her shield back towards her and the three ancient vampires started sparkling in the early morning sunlight. "I've been working on my gift," she explained to Maria, "I've got a physical shield that is pretty much wrapped around me constantly which keeps me from sparkling. I can wrap it around other vampires so that they won't sparkle, but to do it very long takes a lot of energy. I've been working on it, but so far I can only keep Mom under my gift constantly. Though, I don't even have to think about it anymore, so it is getting stronger."

"Wow," Maria breathed, "That's really handy."

Bella nodded, "It is, when we're traveling, I can work on keeping you under it as well."

"What about you Vic?" Maria asked the redhead, "Has your gift improved?"

Victoria nodded, "I can sense a lot more things now, not just things that will be a danger to myself or my family, but dangers to other species as well."

"Makes it easier to hunt bad guys if you can sense where they are," Maria said laughing.

"It's more than that," Kachiri said, bringing herself into the conversation, "With these two working together, they and whoever is with them can hide from any tracker in the world. They're practically invisible to other gifted vampires that might wish to do them harm."

"Really?" Bella asked, "Why haven't you told us this before?"

"It wasn't necessary before," the ancient replied, "But now you are going out into the world where other vampire covens may not be as friendly, and there are… other things out there that might prove interesting for you."

"What do you mean interesting?" Victoria asked, the three younger vampires looking at the three ancient ones.

Kachiri exchanged looks with both Senna and Zafrina before answering the question. "Let's just say that there are more things in Heaven and Earth than anyone will ever understand. We traveled the world before most of the world was 'discovered,' we've seen things that not even vampires would believe in without proof."

"Like what?" Bella inquired.

Senna smiled at her young sister, "That dear one, is something you'll have to find out on your own."

"Now off with you three," Kachiri ordered, "Before we change our minds and decide to keep you here."

The three younger vampires took off, but stopped when they heard Zafrina call after them. "Make sure to go through the Northern part of the land that is known as the Soviet Union," she said, "You might find something interesting up there."

"What do they mean by interesting?" Maria asked.

"Haven't you technically known them longer than we have?" Bella asked.

"Yes, well, you two have spent more time with them."

"Interesting, for them, means interesting," Victoria answered, "Living as long as they have, very few things are truly intriguing."

Maria snorted, "What could they be referring to, el chupacabra?" She expected Victoria and Bella to laugh with her but when they merely shared a look, she gaped at them, "Really?"

"You never really know," was Bella's answer.

"Alright," Maria said slowly, "Where are we headed now?"

"Antarctica," Bella squealed. The other two just look at her. "What?" She said noticing their looks, "I want to play with some penguins."

"Are you sure you're a vampire?" Maria asked, "You act nothing like a vampire."

Victoria laughed, "You should've seen what she did to some poachers she caught trapping some rare birds. There was nothing left of them when she was through with them."

The former warlord looked at the younger vampire appreciatively. "Didn't really think you had it in you when we first met," she commented.

Bella just shrugged, "Well, the Amazons were very thorough teachers with fighting techniques and pretty much everything concerning vampires and even humans."

"What do you mean humans?" Maria asked as they ran, approaching the southern most point of South America.

"They taught us how to use weapons like spears, knives and bows and arrows," Victoria answered, "We should probably hunt before we head to Antarctica. Not many people down there, and I'm not big on munching on penguins."

"We are not eating cute little penguins," Bella cried, "We can surely find some bad guys or homeless surely."

The three vampires quickly found some humans that wouldn't be missed at the edge one of the port cities. After they had gotten their fill, they found a deserted cliff that overlooked the ocean and stood on the edge. In the very distance with their vampire eyesight they could see the glimmer of the frozen continent.

"You sure you want to do this?" Maria asked Bella, looking at the other vampire questionably.

"Freezing cold ice covered land solely inhabited by penguins, birds and various members of the seal and walrus family, what's not to look forward to?" Bella replied, jumping feet first into the waves below.

The two older vampires looked after the younger one incredulously. "She's your daughter," Maria said when Victoria turned to look at her.

Victoria rolled her eyes and the two jumped after the brunette vampire.

* * *

"Bella, we have to leave," Victoria urged as she pried her daughter away from the penguin flock.

"But I want to stay," the other whined, picking a small baby penguin and cooing at it, "They love me, they want me to stay too."

"We need to leave Bella," Maria said, "We've been here for a few weeks already and we need to head to the mainland to hunt. Besides, I might be the only vampire in history to have caught a cold," the Hispanic vampire complained before faking a sneeze.

"Stop whining the both of you," the redhead snapped, "Now why don't we head to Africa like we planned to do."

Bella released her baby penguin and stood up. "I guess you're right," she sighed, "I am feeling a bit peckish. Africa has a big jungle and savannah that's probably crawling with poachers. We should be able to find a proper snack."

"Do you need any energy?" Victoria asked her daughter, staring at her slightly luminescent eyes.

"Probably, I've been keeping my shield up over three people for these past few weeks to keep the sparkling away. It's kind of tiring me out, I need a recharge," Bella answered, grabbing her mother's hand and taking the energy that she needed from her.

The redhead felt a wave come over her as the energy flowed out of her and into Bella. "I really wish you would warn me before you did that," she complained once Bella released her hand.

"You're just not used to it since I haven't taken energy from you in a while," Bella said.

"I agree with Victoria though," Maria interjected, "It's a weird feeling so a little warning would be nice."

Bella sighed, out numbered, "Alright, alright."

The three vampires jumped off of the ice continent into the freezing cold waters of the ocean. They played around with the various whales and seals that inhabited the ocean around Antarctica before heading North towards the tip of Africa. It was a longer swim to the African continent than it was going to Antarctica from South America, so one of them would surface occasionally to check the stars to make sure they were heading the right direction. Soon they saw the signs of land in front of them and surfaced to find a good place to climb out of the water.

"There seems to be some higher regions on the eastern side," Victoria said, "It looks like they're closer to the coast, we might be able to find a place less inhabited so no one will notice us."

"But we have to be close enough to a city or town to feed before we head further inland," Maria commented.

Bella started swimming closer to the continent, "From what I remember about Africa when we studied it at school, that's the country of South Africa, and they have some pretty big cities on the coast. We'll be able to find someone to eat."

They quickly found a spot that was pretty secluded and they felt safe enough to leave the ocean without being seen. Since it was still nighttime, the three predators felt it was a good time to find a city to search out criminals stalking in the night.

"Do racist perverts count as criminals?" Bella asked as they watched a few white men jeering and making rude comments towards some darker women just leaving work to go home.

"They do now," Maria said as she left where they were hiding, "I'll lure them into the alley so we can eat."

The Hispanic vampire made quick work of luring the three men to their death as three vampires descended on them as soon as they were out of sight. They carried the bodies out of the city with them into the wilderness and ripped them apart for scavengers to find them.

They spent weeks in the wild savannah exploring and watching all of the different creatures that called it home. Bella found that constantly keeping her shield up around three people was wearing her out faster than just keeping it up for small periods of time. She was having to take energy every couple of days and was starting to get more irritable, indicating that she needed blood.

"I'm sensing dangerous humans nearby," Victoria said, "They might be poachers of some kind since I can't think of any other reason why they would be this far out into the wild."

"I need blood and soon, keeping my shield up is exhausting," Bella hissed.

Maria looked at the brunette vampire sympathetically. "Do you feel it getting stronger?" Maria asked, "You said that it got easier to keep Vic under your shield."

"Yeah, but that was after a few years, not weeks," Bella moaned, "I had to feed more often, but I didn't need to keep my shield up as long as I have been."

"Don't you two start again," Victoria said, "The humans aren't far from here, in forest over there." The redhead started moving towards a large clump of trees in the distance.

They took to the trees once they reached the forest and quietly crept through the leaves and branches in the direction Victoria was indicating. They found four men with guns cornering a large leopard that was growling and snarling ferociously. "One for each of us and an extra for Bella," Maria observed, licking her lips at the size of the men, "They're quiet large and healthy too, that means good blood flow."

The vampires dropped from the trees behind their prey. The men whirled around and starting firing at whatever had dropped behind them but before they could get more than two shots out, the three vampires were on them, draining them dry. Bella snapped two of their necks and drained them before ripping the bodies apart. "Ah," she sighed when she got done, "I feel better."

Victoria rolled her eyes while Maria laughed at the other vampire. She turned and noticed that the leopard that the men had cornered was standing staring at them. "Is that leopard looking at us weirdly?" Maria asked, eying the animal suspiciously.

The other two turned and looked at the animal that was just standing there calmly. "It is," Bella murmured, "That's weird, they usually run away."

Suddenly the leopard started to shimmer and fade, revealing a young African woman wearing a leopard skin wrap. The vampires just gaped at the young woman, barely a teenager. "Well that was unexpected," Bella said, snapping out of her daze, moving slowly towards the woman, "Do you speak English?"

"A little," the woman drawled out, "I take you to my father, he speaks more of your language than I."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Maria hissed out in Spanish, which the other two vampires learned to speak while living with the Amazons. "I mean, she was just a giant leopard, and now she's a person."

"Maybe this is what the Amazons were talking about," Bella said as they followed the girl deeper into the forest, "More things in heaven and Earth than anyone could imagine."

Victoria nodded in agreement, "I'm not getting many danger vibes from her or where she's taking us. We should be fine."

"It'll be much faster if we run," the girl said to them, turning around, "Just follow me." She took off into the forest at a much faster pace than a normal human, but slower than the average vampire. Victoria, Bella and Maria easily kept pace with the girl and eventually came to a large stone outcropping that, to the average eye, would appear natural but the three vampires pick up on the subtle markings and placement that indicated that it was man-made. The younger girl walked toward the stone and rolled away a portion of it, revealing an opening. "In," was all the girl said before she disappeared into the darkness.

The three followed her down what looked like a tunnel. They walked some more and eventually came to a large room that was illuminated by glowing crystals and luminescent moss. Inside the room were groups of buildings and houses, some build into the side of the rock and some freestanding. They heard what sounded like running water so they turned to the sound. On the other side of the room was an opening that was closed off by water. "It's an underground waterfall," Bella murmured, "This cave is behind a waterfall."

They followed the girl to the center of the village and saw people watching them from their homes. A tall, older man wearing a lion's skin emerged from the largest building built into the wall and approached them. The girl spoke to him quickly in a language that the vampires couldn't understand, but judging from the expressions on their faces and the girl's gestures, they figured that she was telling him about what happened in the forest.

"They smell strange," Victoria murmured to her companions, trying not to be heard by the other people in the cave.

Maria and Bella looked at the redhead curiously before taking in the scent of those around them. "They do smell strange," Maria agreed, "Like the way the forest smells after a rain. They certainly don't smell like any human or animal I've ever encountered."

They stopped whispering when the man started to walk towards them. He stopped before them and bowed his head in greeting. "Welcome," he said in thickly accented English, "I am Sid (pronounced _Seed_), I am the chief of this tribe. My daughter Kida told me of what you did for her in the forest and for that I wish to thank you."

The three vampires looked between each other for a minute, trying to figure out who would speak for them when finally Bella stepped forward, seeing as how she was the friendliest of them. "It's no problem," she said, "But might I ask if you know what we are, and what are you exactly? What is this place?"

Sid chuckled, a deep rumbling laugh that half sounded like a growl. "You are what is known as the _Sasabonsam_ in our folk-lore, a vampire in your language I believe," he answered, "We have had many dealings with your kind, both good and bad. And as for what we are," he scratched the graying beard on his face, "There is no true descriptive word for what we are. The closest thing is Skin-Walkers."

"I've heard of those," Maria said, "People who wore the skins of animals and took the shape of those animals. I thought they were just a legend though."

"Says the vampire," the other man chuckled again.

"He does have a point Maria," Victoria told her.

"And as for your last question," he said continuing on, "This place, this cave is our home. Our people have lived here for centuries, ever since we retreated down here to escape extinction from humans who were afraid of us."

"Makes sense," Bella agreed, "But how do you know of vampires?"

The older man sighed and motioned for the young girl, Kida, to bring him something to sit on. The vampires heard his bones creak a little as he sat down on a make shift stool that the girl brought to him. "The first encounter my people have had with your kind is what stemmed the legend of the _Sasabonsam_. They were wild women that descended from the trees and ripped into humans, many of who were hunting us. These women were actually dressed pretty similar to yourselves. We never revealed ourselves to them, but it was like they knew we were different from normal animals."

"You smell different from normal animals or humans," Victoria interjected, "Like fresh earth after a rain."

"Good to know," he replied, "That first encounter was recorded in our legends and passed down through our history." He pointed to the walls that had pictures and images recorded on them, "Most of our history is told word of mouth, but we keep track of important events by painting them on this wall. "It was in this lifetime that we encountered your kind again, other than observing vampires passing through our lands towards more highly populated areas."

"I'm guessing your more recent encounter with vampires wasn't a good one," Maria observed, taking in the frightened looks of those few that she could see peeking out from their homes.

The chief's eyes hardened. "It was a few years ago that a coven of seven vampires came to this wilderness. They were different from the _Sasabonsam_ who descended on their human prey from trees like wild cats, much like yourselves. These… creatures… hunted on foot, like humans, and stalked animals instead of people."

"Animal drinkers," Bella gasped, "We've heard about them. They're abnormal vampires that drink from animals instead of people. It supposedly dulls their senses."

"What happened while they were here?" Victoria asked.

"Many of our kind didn't make it," Sid replied, "The larger male seemed to make it his mission to kill as many lions as he could. They couldn't tell the difference between us and a normal lion or leopard. We were nearly wiped to extinction before we retreated back to the safety of this cave."

"They took my mother from me," Kida spoke for the first time in the conversation, "She was protecting me, and one of them, maybe one of the males, took her."

"The more I hear about these so called 'animal drinkers' the more I dislike them," Bella seethed.

The chief spoke out in a loud voice in his native language, addressing his people. The people started to come out of their houses and moved towards the vampires. "I told them that you were _Sasabonsam_, who were honorable hunters protecting the wild from human inference, and not like those monsters who hunted us," the chief said, standing up. "You are welcome to stay with my people while you are here and anytime you are in the area."

"Ooh, yay," Bella clapped excitedly, "I love making new friends."

Victoria groaned and smacked her face with her hand, "Sometimes I wonder if you're actually a vampire or not."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you're a nutcase," Maria said.

"Anyway," Victoria said before the conversation could go any further, "We would love to stay here for a while. Well, not down here, but up in the forest exploring around. Maybe you can show us where poachers usually hunt, they're one of our favorite meals."

Sid nodded, "My daughter can show you around and begin teaching you our language as long as you promise to keep an eye on her when she's in the above ground world."

"Of course we will, but first, is that an underground waterfall?" Bella asked, pointing towards the opening on the other side of the room.

"It is. It's part of an underground spring, where we get most of our fresh water," the chief answered.

Bella stared at the waterfall for a moment. "Be right back," she said before dashing off towards the water.

"She does this a lot," Victoria explained to the people gaping after the brunette vampire, "She'll be back when she gets it out of her system."

A few minutes later, Bella returned, soaking wet. "That was fun," she said, "The rapids down the way were awesome, though they washed off the remnants of the markings that the Amazons gave me… Oh well, I knew they were going to be washed off eventually."

"I'm surprised they managed to stay this long," Victoria said, "Mine washed off a while ago, probably on the way to Antarctica."

"I was very determined," was Bella's answer.

"And you wonder why we think you're a very abnormal vampire, besides the obvious reasons of course," Maria interjected, gesturing towards Bella's eyes.

"So how long do you three plan to stay in Africa?" Sid asked them.

The three vampires turned back to the skin-walker, half forgetting where they were. "Um, couple months maybe," Victoria replied, "We were just passing through, seeing the sights and such. We're going on a world tour of sorts."

"Then I wish you well on your travels," Sid said, "Kida will stay with you while you're in the area. If you ever come through again, you know where to find us."

"Thank you Sid," Bella said. Sid nodded towards the vampires and motioned for Kida to show them out. The young girl nodded and started back in the direction they came from. "Does it hurt, you know, when you shift into a leopard?" The brunette vampire asked the young teenager.

"No," Kida replied slowly, "It no hurt, feels more like… Like putting on new clothes."

"Fascinating," Bella breathed out. She watched the younger girl for a few minutes before she spoke again, "Why do I feel like there's something else that happened when the animal drinkers came through years ago, something that you haven't told us."

Kida sighed, "As skin-walkers, we are giving a longer lifespan than humans. We are not immortal but we live longer. I was just a child when my mother was taken from me, but my betrothed was taken as well."

"Your betrothed?" Maria questioned.

"Yes, he was a lion, like my father. He was the strongest in his year group. I was told from a young age that we would be together, and had grown to love him. The large vampire killed him in front of me after playing with him for a while. One of the females turned to me, but my mother protected me and made me run away," Kida said, tears in her eyes.

"Oh Kida," Bella murmured, tears in her eyes as she hugged the younger girl, "Were you mates?"

"Skin-walkers chose their mates," Kida replied, "I hate these animal drinking monsters as you call them for taking away my chance to grow, for forcing me to watch my father age before me. I have to wait until my new betrothed is born and grows."

"I don't think I'll ever be able to meet any animal drinker without wanting to kill them, let alone be civil," Bella said hotly, "They destroy lives without even realizing it. They think that not drinking from humans makes them superior, but really all it does is leave them oblivious to the chaos and destruction they cause."

"We'll just have to stay away from them," Victoria said, "A coven of 7 vampires is unusual. We could probably take them with the training that we've all had, but I don't want to chance it."

They reached the opening of the tunnel and stepped out cautiously, looking around to make sure nothing was around. "I am going to slip into my leopard skin," Kida said, "I will remain in it for the time while you are here."

"You don't have to do that Kida, we can keep you safe in your human form," Maria said reassuringly.

"I know that," Kida said, "You are _Sasabonsam, _I doubt there is much you can't handle, but it is easier for me to move around the trees as a leopard and to be able to keep up at the speed you are accustomed to traveling."

The three vampires watched as Kida seemed to fade and flicker as she transitioned into a leopard.

"Alright, let's go exploring," Bella cried, "Eat some poachers, dig up some traps, make friends with some of the animals. This is going to be a good couple months."

Victoria just shook her head at her daughter's antics and looked into the questioning eyes of the leopard. "She's always like this," she murmured, hearing the leopard chuff out a laugh, "You should've seen her with the penguins in Antarctica."

The vampires and the leopard took to the trees to begin exploring the vast wilderness of Africa.

* * *

**Review Please, longer reviews keep me inspired**

**This'll probably be the last we hear about these horrible animal drinkers for a while, since I'm getting kinda tired of picking on them a little. I'll turn my sights towards something I had niggling in the back of my mind for a while and decided to see if it'll work out. Hint: Has something to do with the Volturi.**

**Anyway, one reviewer requested that I not make everyone in this story gay like many femslash stories out there tend to do. I won't, don't worry. There will be pairings of every type, some good, some bad. I will remain undecided about the fate of Rosalie's mate situation until she pops up in the story. I am working on building Bella, Victoria and Maria's characters and their relationship in this little make-shift coven they have going on. Plus, I have many adventures in store for them.**

**I am not using any OC vampires in this story, I will however, have mythical creatures. Skin-walkers are predominate in Native American myths, but there are some legends of them in Africa. Sasabonsam is an actual word from African myths about vampires.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I was debating between posting this today or tomorrow, so I decided on today or I would forget and just continue on writing the next chapter. Anyway, we meet more vampires in this chapter, it's quite obvious who given where they are, and as well as another mythical creature. I'm trying not to overdo it with the mythological creatures; they'll probably encounter more than I'll write about. I might mention some in passing.**

**Anyway, if anyone has any ideas for the myths, legends or folk lore for them to encounter, just drop me a review or a PM. My only request is that it has to be a legit myth or legendary creature, can't be something you just make up and want me to use. I'm also going for location too, so if anyone knows some specific for Australia, that would be really helpful. Europe and Asia are no problem, there are many to choose from, most other places are difficult. We'll also have more interaction with regular animals as well.**

**The ones they will encounter in the future are: Mermaids, Phoenix, Leprachauns (or fairies, something from the small people category when they make it to Ireland and Scotland)**

******On a different note, one reviewer asked me if Bella was a virgin, or if she's going to have a relationship with another vampire before she meets her mate. Honestly, I'm not sure, that isn't a big part of my story. I feel like Bella might've had a few trysts when she was a human, she seems like the sort who would've done that during her teenage years or maybe some "experimenting" in college, but I'm not sure.**

******Review if you like the story. If you don't like it, why did you stop by.**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 5**

**1 Year Later**

"It's too bad that Kida couldn't come with us," Bella commented casually.

"Oh yeah, because a being that needs water and heat wandering around the Sahara desert is completely a good idea," Maria responded, shaking her head at the other vampire like she was an idiot.

"Well I was just being social," the brunette retorted, glaring at the small vampire, "I liked Kida, she was nice."

"She was very nice, but the desert isn't good for actually living things."

"Alright, stop!" Victoria yelled, "It's like having two children. Kida couldn't come because she was only staying with us while we were in her tribe's territory, and besides, it's nighttime and it apparently it gets really cold in the desert at night."

"Did we have to travel at night?" Bella asked.

"You're the one that wanted to see the stars, and you wear out faster with the constant use of your shield," Victoria sniped, "And it will be easier for us to not be so conspicuous at night."

"Yeah," Bella agreed, looking down at her new lioness skin bikini that Sid had given her, "Though it's quite an honor that the tribe gave us the animals skins that their fallen had worn. I'm extremely disappointed that they won't help us changed into animals…"

"It's an even bigger honor for you Vic," Maria said, "Kida gave you the one that her mother used, that's a huge honor. She really looked up to you once she really got to know you and your story."

Victoria just hummed in response, looking down at the leopard skin clothing she was wearing. Suddenly, her gift kicked in on high alert as she detected danger in the area. "Guys be quiet," she hissed, "We're entering another vampires territory."

Just as she spoke, the three of them sensed two vampires running at them from a distance. When the vampires finally came in viewing range, the three wild coven members saw that they were two males, one tall and older looking, while the other looked to be just a young boy, younger than Maria. Both had dark hair and olive skin. "The boy has a gift," Victoria said, "He gives off more danger than the older one, but he also lurks of danger, similar to the Amazons. He must be very old."

The two vampires stopped in front of them and the older one looked at them suspiciously with a hint of lust in his eyes. "Who are you?" He bit out roughly, "Why are you in my territory?"

"We didn't know that this was claimed area," Victoria said, watching both of them warily, "We were just passing through."

"I don't believe you," he said, "You are spies for the Volturi. Benjamin, get rid of them."

The younger looking vampire, Benjamin as he was identified, just glared at the older man, "We've discussed this Amun. I am not your weapon to use against other vampires. I am my own person, and I believe these three. Why don't we just take them back home with us and ask them more questions there?"

"They are spies," Amun insisted, "And you want to take them to our home?"

"We aren't spies," Maria hissed, her eyes flashing, "Like our coven leader told you, we're just passing through."

Benjamin looked at the three women and smiled. "I believe you," he said, "Why don't you follow us back to our dwelling place. The sun is going to come up soon and we don't need to be attracting attention."

Victoria glanced quickly at Bella and Maria before nodding her head. Amun glared at them before taking off back in the direction from whence he came. The remaining vampires soon followed, Benjamin taking the lead to show them the way to go.

They soon saw a large mansion that could also double as some kind of a temple, in the distance. Maria snorted in disgust but followed Benjamin into the structure. Once inside, the three newcomers saw that there were two more members of this strange little desert dwelling coven, two women; one looked to be a teenager while the other looked to be the same age as Amun. "Welcome welcome," Benjamin said, waving them in, "Come in. Now as you've probably guess, I'm Benjamin and this is my mate Tia." He motioned towards the teenage vampire. "Our coven leader Amun and his mate Kebi," he said again, referring to the scowling man and his vampire shadow, "We are known as the Egyptian coven, now what are your names."

"I am Victoria," the redhead said, "And these are my coven mates Maria and Bella."

"Are you members of the Volturi?" Amun hissed out again, "Have you come to take Benjamin from me?"

"Back off," Bella spit out, surprising the other two members in her coven. The normally friendly brunette never spoke that way to anyone; something about Amun must've really set her off. "We don't know anything about the Volturi, other than they consider themselves rulers over the vampire world."

"Not know of the Volturi," Tia spoke for the first time, "I don't believe it."

"We haven't exactly associated much with other vampires, and the ones we do know haven't felt the need to tell us much about them," Victoria answered honestly.

"I know a little bit more about them than these two, but I've avoided them as much as possible. They would probably execute me given the chance," Maria mentioned casually.

Amun gave them calculating looks. "You wouldn't happen to be Maria the warlord of the Southern American wars?" He asked, appraising the smaller vampire.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" She sniped back, murmuring a few Spanish insults at the other vampire.

The older vampire evaluated her for a minute before taking in all of their appearances. "Why do you dress the way that you do? Have you no pride in your own appearance? No decency as women?"

"If you must know," Victoria said, "We wear what we do to signify our being a part of the Amazonian coven."

"The Amazons," Amun gasped out, quickly taking a step back, "They're almost as old as I am. You are definitely not part of the Volturi if you claim to be part of their coven."

"That's what we've been telling you this whole time," Bella sighed, exasperated, "We're just passing through, we didn't know that any vampires lived in the desert."

"And if you don't mind me asking, how old are you anyway?" Victoria asked. "I can sense you two," she motioning between Amun and Kebi, "Are very old."

"We are well over four thousand," Amun replied in a superior tone of voice.

"We really need to discuss with our sisters a better method in keeping track of the years," Bella murmured to Victoria, "Since they apparently lost count after the first thousand."

"Hmm," Victoria murmured in agreement, "So what is deal with the Volturi? Why are you so frightened of them?"

Amun looked pensively at them for a few minutes before speaking, "I will tell you; you three might as well sit down, it's going to be a long story."

Victoria, Bella and Maria took seats on various furniture or ledges around the room and settled to listen to the older vampire. "I was changed during the time that the Romanians were in charge of the vampire world," Amun started, "They had their empire, and the Egyptian coven, which I was a part of, had our space. We were treated like gods here in Egypt, with many slaves and concubines. The humans made sacrifices to us, live human sacrifices that sustained our feeding. The Romanian coven had the same, which is why we were left alone. Soon, however, the Volturi rose to power and wiped out the majority of the Romanians, leaving only two alive to serve as a reminder."

The older vampire paused for a minute, not registering the disgusted look the three wild vampires had on their faces. "The Volturi disproved of the way we Egyptians led our lives here in Egypt so they sent a warning to us. I took Kebi, who is my mate and surrendered; the rest of my coven was wiped out."

"When was this?" Bella interrupted.

"About 3,000 years ago, something like that," he replied before continuing his story, "Aro, the leader of the Volturi is extremely power hungry. He collects gifted vampires and binds them to his coven using the gift of one of his coven members. I do not recall her name, but she has the ability to change bonds, forge them to keep vampires in his coven and bend them to his will. He even killed his own sister Didyme for threatening his power. Didyme's mate Marcus is one of the rulers of the Volturi. Aro bound him to them so tightly so that he wouldn't follow his mate. Marcus has a gift that is useful to him…" Amun trailed off for a moment, before picking back up, "It was this same method that Aro used to take one of my coven members. I changed him, and trained him, he was the world's best tracker. Aro found out about him and took him for his own. It is for this reason that I am afraid that they will find out about Benjamin and take him from me as well."

"Do you have a gift?" Maria asked the young vampire.

Benjamin looked hesitantly at Amun before answering her. "I can influence the elements," he answered, "earth, water, fire and air. Mental gifts are difficult for me to combat against, but I can hold my own."

"I can see how that would be a invaluable gift for the Volturi to take, especially with the ability to manipulate fire since that is so lethal to vampires," Maria said, looking at the young boy appraisingly.

"We'll have to make sure to stay out of the sight of the Volturi then," Victoria said, looking at Bella, "With both of our gifts, I think it would prove to much of a temptation for them."

"You have gifts? What are they?" Amun demanded.

Victoria ignored him, "Where are the Volturi based?"

"Italy," Benjamin answered, "Volterra, Italy."

The redhead nodded in return. "Thank you for telling us. May we stay here until the sun goes back down? We plan to continue our wanderings."

"I think that is best," Amun said, "Now if you will excuse me, my mate and I are going to retire to our room for the day."

The other vampires in the room watched the two ancients leave and then they all just looked at each other.

"So…" Bella started, eying Benjamin and Tia. The two members of the Egyptian coven started at the wild vampires as well.

"Whatisitliketobemated?" "Whatisitliketobeanomad?" Bella and Benjamin asked at the same time. The two of them looked at each other for a moment. "You go first," the Egyptian said.

"What is it like to be mated?" Bella asked. "Two of our Amazonian sisters are mated to each other, but they've always been mated. I would like to hear what it's like from vampires less than a thousand years old."

Tia giggled, "We are indeed less than a thousand. We've only been vampires for a couple hundred."

"Not as old as myself then," Victoria said, "I was turned in the 1500s."

"Yeah, we were turned in the 1800's," Benjamin confirmed.

"Around the same time as myself then," Maria commented, "Now go on, what's it like to be mated?"

"Well," Tia started, taking Benjamin's hand in her own, "It's hard to explain. I would imagine that every mated pair is different, based on what we observe in our own coven anyway. Amun is the superior in their mating, while Kebi is the submissive. She always follows his word and direction; it's very rare that she speaks to anyone other than Amun."

"I like to believe that our mating is closer to an equal partnership," Benjamin said, smiling at Tia, "Though there is always a more dominate partner in any relationship. The dominance just manifests itself in a different way. Now that we've answered your question, can you answer ours?"

"Oh yes, what is it like to be a nomad," Victoria murmured, "Well, it's fun for a while. I've been a nomad of sorts for most of my existence as a vampire. On some level it's freeing not to have anything to tie you down, no land to protect, but on the other hand we're always moving around."

"We do have places we call home though," Bella said, "Maria has a bungalow on a private beach in Mexico, while Vic and I can either live with our coven mates in the Amazon rainforest or a cabin in the Northern part of America. We haven't been there in years though."

"What about humans?" Tia asked, "Do you interact with them at all?"

"Other than tracking them and eating them, no," Maria said, "Well, if we want to go somewhere to see the sights, we're bound to run into humans, but we prefer to do our sightseeing at night."

Questions went back and forth for the rest of the day, the two covens grilling each other on their different lifestyles and vampire experiences. When night fell, the three members of the wild coven bid their two new friends as well before stealing away into the darkness.

* * *

"So where are we headed now?" Bella asked as she climbed down from her place on top of the sphinx.

It was a week after the three had left the Egyptian coven and they had explored all over Egypt, digging up hidden tombs of pharaohs then burying them again for humans to find later. They concluded their tour of the ancient country with a stop at the pyramids to explore them.

"I know we originally planned to head for Europe right away after this, but I think we should give that a pass for a while and head down through India and swim to Australia from there," Victoria said.

"Trying to stay out of the Volturi's range of view?" Maria commented.

"That and it's summer here right now so it should be winter in Australia, less people to deal with, and I've never heard of any vampires making it to Australia, I kind of want to know why don't you?" The redhead mused.

Bella and Maria stared at each other. "That is a little weird," Bella said, "Maybe there's a reason, another supernatural creature or something?"

"I don't know, haven't heard of many in Asia either, of course, all of this just might be preference to certain areas. Most vampires are congregated in either the Americas or Europe," Victoria replied.

"I wish I paid more attention in my myths, legends and folk lore class in college," Bella groaned, "It would come in handy right around now."

Maria looked at the other vampire incredulously, "Myths, legends and folk lore? Really?"

The brunette shrugged, "I thought it would be amusing since I was living with a myth and I was going to be one in a few years. Plus I needed another literature course, and that counted."

The Hispanic vampire started to say something else but seemed to think better of it and closed her mouth. "Are you two quite done?" Victoria asked, "I think we should get a move on. We have to pass through the middle east to get down to India. It's mainly desert area so if we want to travel during the day, Bella will have to use her shield."

"And unless you want to grab some actual clothes, we'll have to stay out of populated areas," Maria pointed out.

"Clothes? Not an option," Bella stated firmly, "I like what I'm wearing just fine."

"Don't you two start up about clothes again," Victoria hissed, "We have to go now while the sun is still down."

The three vampires started to run, and it was in no time that they were out of Egypt and moving into lands that were once part of the old empires of Rome, Greece, Egypt and Persia. When they were in a secluded forest area halfway through what was ancient Persia, Victoria's survival instinct kicked into overdrive.

"There is something very dangerous here," she said to the other two, "We have to be very careful."

Maria sniffed uncertainly, "Whatever it is out there, I don't smell it, though, some things don't have a scent actually."

A large beast materialized out of the shadows of the trees and the darkness of the night. It was a monstrous animal, as large as some of the rhinos they chased in Africa, but posed the head and tale of a lion, a large black horn protruding menacingly from its head. The beast stared at the petrified and amazed vampires across from it, pawing at the ground with its large leg.

"Bella," the small Hispanic vampire whispered urgently, "I need you to muster every brain cell you possess and retroactively use your vampiric memory back to your mythology class to tell us what that thing is."

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," the brunette whispered back quickly, "Wait, we're in the middle east right, that thing must be a _Karkadann_."

"What the hell is a _Karkadann?" _Victoria whispered, gazing fearfully at the strange creature.

Bella gulped, "Basically the Eastern version of a unicorn, only more violent and blood thirsty."

"Brilliant," the other two murmured.

"Wait," Bella remembered, "It's supposed to like females, and not want to hurt them, maybe that's why it's just standing there." The brunette slowly approached the _Karkadann_, making sure not to set it off. When it allowed her to pass safely, she motioned for the other two to follow her slowly. Once they had slowly walked an appropriate amount of distance away from the apparently not so mythological creature, they took off as fast as their vampire abilities could take them.

"I thought for sure you were going to pet that thing," Maria said, her haste making her Spanish accent more profound.

"Even I'm not that stupid," Bella snorted, "A regular animal is one thing, but something from myth and legend that basically no one knows anything about? Not a good idea. Plus, while the _Karkadann_ are very tolerant towards women, that still doesn't mean that they're any less blood thirsty and fierce."

"Do either of you think this is a bit strange?" Victoria commented out of the blue.

The other two looked at each other curiously. "What do you mean mom?" Bella asked her mother. When with others they decided it was better to simply act as sisters, which they played the part of often, but when it was just the three of them or with their Amazonian sisters, Bella still preferred to refer to her mother as such.

"Well, we're basically running into all these supernatural creatures, beings of myth, why don't any humans run into them either?"

"Maybe they can't see them any more," came out of Bella's mouth before she could control it.

"What do you mean?" Maria asked, referring to what Bella said.

The brunette crossed her eyes as she thought for a moment. "Well," she drawled out, "The world was a very different place when these legends were being written. Humans were more willing to believe in the strange, even though it frightened them but they were intrigued by it, enough to write down stories and draw pictures anyway. But maybe now, they don't want to believe in the strange and extraordinary because it would be too frightening for them. Maybe the human brain convinces them that they're seeing something else, like with the _Karkadann_ maybe they're just seeing a regular lion, at that is frightening enough for them."

"And the ones that actually see these creatures for what they are," Maria continued, "Are thought to be crazy because who would believe them."

"I think I'm going crazy," Victoria said, "I'm a vampire who's friends with a Skin-walker and I can't believe I just saw a _Karkadann."_

The three women just looked at each other and started giggling uncontrollably. "We should keep going," Bella said after a few moments, "I'll keep trying to remember the different creatures from that class, but I won't know which ones are still around or which ones we'll run into."

"Prepare for the worst," Victoria told her before they started heading south into India.

* * *

**Review Please, longer reviews keep me inspired**

**I read character summaries about the Egyptian coven before I wrote this and from what I read, I don't particularly like Amun that much. If I didn't like him, I feel like the wild coven wouldn't like him either. They made friends with Tia and Benjamin though, so we might hear from them again. I find it weird that there are no vampires living in Asia or Australia, you'd think there would be more than there is. I decided to spin it as a supernatural reason, so what do you think? What is keeping vampire away from these places? I have some ideas, but I want to know what you think.**

**And for all of you who loved Kida, and might be mad that she is already gone in this chapter, don't worry, she'll be back later. I'm thinking she might have a run in with a certain vegetarian coven, hmm...**

**And as just for fun, what is your favorite creature of legend?**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: This is another short one, I'm sorry, but I end chapters where it'll sound good or cause the most shock value and stress for you guys. That sounds mean, but it's kinda fun for me. Thank you guys for all of your suggestions, and as a big thank you, I decided to switch up the plan a little and throw you guys a bone at the end of this chapter. You'll know it when you see it.**

**It's a little complicated dealing with age when discussing vampires. Bella is physically older than Maria, but Maria is the older vampire. It gets confusing for me. I resolved it in my mind kinda, but it's still weird.**

**Also I have two requests for you guys, first one is that I need a new summary for this story, since I've never really liked it. Send me ideas if you come up with some good ones.**

**The other request is that I'm really interested in reading some more Bella/Tanya, Bella/Kate and I'm also looking for the non-existant pairing of Bella/Irina. I need new reading material people! If you aren't authors, and just readers, consider a change in careers...**

******Anyway, review.**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 6**

"What the hell was that thing?" Maria gasped as they finally stopped running when they reached the Indian coastline.

"That was the _Roc_," Bella answered her, pressing her hand to her chest to make sure that her unbeating heart didn't start up again due to shock, "Large, legendary bird of prey native to certain regions of Asia. It's been known to carry off whole elephants to eat them. There's not much it doesn't eat actually; extremely territorial and bad tempered."

"Considering it was trying to make us it's next meal, I don't doubt it," Victoria huffed, "First the _Karkadann_ last week as we were making our way here and then the _Roc_, I hope the swim to Australia will be less stressful."

Maria looked over towards the redhead. "Speaking of swimming," she started, "Why are we swimming everywhere? I mean, I have enough money, we can just fly down there."

"Bella here is afraid of flying," Victoria snicker, looking pointedly at the brunette.

The Hispanic vampire blinked, "Okay… A vampire afraid of flying… What about a boat?"

"Mom's afraid of boats for some reason," Bella answered.

"Bad experiences," the redhead replied weakly when the third member of their coven glared at her.

Maria threw her hands up in disgust. "I guess we'll keep swimming then. I need to hunt first before heading down under."

"We all do," Victoria said. They moved further down the coastline and located one of the larger towns. Since India is so largely populated, it wasn't hard to find a few homeless humans close to death due to disease and famine.

"Are you good on energy?" Victoria asked Bella when they finished hunting.

"I sucked the energy out of the two people I ate, but I could always use some more," Bella answered, holding out her hand. She took what she needed from her mother and felt her shield strengthen even further with the added boost.

"You guys ready for another dip?" Maria asked once Bella got finished.

"Let's go!" Bella cried, running into the ocean, "I wonder what we'll find in Australia?"

"Based on previous experiences during our travels, who really knows," Victoria answered, "I feel like something big is going to happen though, something we'll all have to face alone."

"What makes you say that?" Maria asked. She stopped swimming so she could better see the older vampire when she answered. The youngest vampire of the group stopped as well and looked at her mother.

"I don't know, just a feeling my gift is sending me. I don't think we're in danger… Well, I'm not sure about that either," came the hesitant reply.

"Are we sure we want to go then?" Bella asked, not liking that her mother felt so uncertain about something.

"No, we keep going," Victoria said firmly, "I'm not sure what we're going to be facing, but we have to do it. That might be why my gift is being so evasive about this."

"I don't always like your gift when it has a mind of it's own," Maria complained, "That's how we ended up on that mountain with that crazy bird."

"That was fun though wasn't it?" Victoria offered weakly.

"If by fun, you mean I thought it was possible for that bird to scare me human so I could have a heart attack and die, then yes, it was great fun," the pint sized vampire retorted.

The three just floated there and looked at each other for a minute before they burst out laughing. When they finally calmed down they resumed swimming south towards Australia. Since it was nighttime, they were able to swim near the surface instead of further down so they were better able to keep track of their direction.

Suddenly a stormed kicked up over-head and the water turned choppy and started to churn. The three vampires surfaced and were met by pounding wind and waves that pushed and turned even their stone bodies all around. "The clouds have blocked the stars," Victoria yelled over the deafening roar of the wind, "I'm not sure which direction we're facing now, we got turned around."

"I'll duck down to see if there's anything underwater that might tell us where we are," Bella said, diving beneath the waves. She looked around, looking for the beginnings of a continental shelf, or a sunken ship that might indicate where they were and which direction they needed to go in, but all she saw was the darkness of the ocean. Something shifted out of the corner of her eye which drove her quickly back to the surface. "Something's down there," she gasped fearfully, looking around her, "Something big."

"Like how big, like shark or whale big?" Maria asked.

The younger vampire shook her head hesitantly. "Bigger," she whispered, "And longer, almost like a snake."

"Or a serpent," Victoria murmured in horror.

The very ocean and heavens around them seemed to tremble in fear as their world exploded upwards. They shot out of the ocean with a vicious thrust as something hit them from beneath. As the descended quickly back towards the ocean, the other two vampires could see a vague outline of what Bella had been talking about, and they felt true fear for probably the first time.

The creatures massive head breeched the surface just as the three women hit the water; the three women surfaced quickly and gaped at the creature that coiled it's body around them in the churning waves. "The _Leviathan_," Maria murmured, staring at the large, violent sea creature before her.

"You know what that thing is?" Victoria gasped out.

"Of course I do," Maria hissed, "My human family was Catholic. I have read the Bible you know."

"He is described as one of the greatest creatures on Earth in the book of Job Mom," Bella whispered, "No one can defeat him."

The beast lurched forward with a terrible roar, grabbing a hold of Victoria with one claw while whacking at the other two with its long body. Bella tried desperately to get to either her mother or Maria who ended up on the other side of the beast but the monster's writhing body caused the waves to churn even harder, making it difficult for even a vampire to battle against the elements. With another great roar, the _Leviathan_ struck out again and the three women were jettisoned out into the ocean in different directions. Blinded by intense pain caused by the blow and the beating that their stone bodies had taken, they slipped into unconsciousness, letting the ocean carry them wherever it will.

* * *

"Ugh, my head," Victoria groaned, regaining consciousness slowly.

"See? I told you she would wake up," came a small whispered voice.

"I didn't think she would since the guardian throttled her," another voice said.

"I know, it really did some damage, that's why I brought her here. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get to her companions before they were swept away."

When Victoria sat up, the small voices stopped chattering. "Who's there?" She moaned out, slowly opening her eyes. The redhead let out a gasp when she spotted a small glowing being hovering on wings in front of her eyes.

"Oh my," the creature murmured, "You have the most beautiful red eyes. I've never seen anyone with such an eye color."

"Um," Victoria stuttered, "Thanks… Now if you don't mind telling me, where am I and who are you?"

"Oh forgive me," the being said, dimming the glow to reveal a small human like figure, "I am Ayla, I'm a nature fairy, and him down there," she said pointing towards a small blue glowing figure, "Is Calder, he's a water sprite."

The vampire blinked, "Sprites and fairies… Alright, I'll buy that, where am I, how did I get, well, wherever I am?"

"The guardian got a hold of you," Ayla said sadly, "It throttled you and your companions pretty badly. I got you here to safety but I was unable to get to your companions before the guardian sent them away."

"The guardian? You mean that creature in the storm last night?" Victoria asked incredulously.

"Yes, he protects our home," Calder replied. The two small beings started flying further into the forest surrounding them. Victoria hesitated for a minute before following them. Her gift wasn't giving her any warning signals that something bad would happen, so she continued forward.

When they reached the edge of the forest and what she assumed to be was an island, the vampire gasped. She saw a clear bubble or some type of barrier and on the other side of the barrier were the waters of the ocean moving around them. "Where the hell am I?" She demanded, turning towards the tiny beings.

"The realm of the fairies and sprites of course," Ayla responded like it was obvious, "It's on the back of what you would call a giant sea turtle."

Victoria just stared at the small creature in disbelief. "I need to sit down," she muttered, turning to sit on a rock, "I mean, I believe in fairies and all that, I'm Irish, comes with the territory, but you expect me to believe that we're on this magical island under the water on the back of a turtle?"

"I'm not sure why you find that so hard to believe strange one," Calder huffed, "There are many legends in your world that discuss worlds and lands being formed on the back of turtles, they just weren't ever correct as to which one."

"And fairies, sprites, whatever, lives here?"

"Well, the elders and us young ones live here." Ayla made a face when she said 'young ones,' "The grown ones live out in the world, while we're stuck here going to school, it's unfair."

Victoria decided to just go with the flow since she's seen some pretty weird things since leaving the Amazons. "So you're young for… for fairies," she said slowly, "How old are you, and how many of you are here?"

"We're about a year old so we just started fairy training school," the water sprite muttered, "Oh! We're going to get so much trouble for this! We're supposed to alert the elders if we save someone from the guardian. Ayla we have to go tell them."

"Oh, you're right, we're going to be supervising the fish schools for weeks because of this," the green fairy cried, "We'll be back strange one!"

The two little people flew off with a streak of blue and green light following them. Victoria just stared after them for a moment before looking back out at the ocean on the other side of the barrier. "How do I get out of here?" She murmured to herself, "I have to find Maria and Bella." Her eyes welled up with venom tears that wouldn't fall, "Bella, my baby, she's out there on her own. Who knows what will happen to her, to the both of them…"

* * *

Maria groaned as she slowly came back to consciousness. She muttered a few curse words in Spanish as she opened her eyes and was greeted to bright sunlight and sparkling skin. The Hispanic vampire quickly sat up and surveyed her surroundings, looking for cover to get out of the sun. Maria noticed a forest behind her just off of the beach she was laying on and darted towards it, getting out of the sun. "Bella must either be out of it as well or too far away for her shield to take affect," she mused, "Now I just have to figure out where the hell I am and where Bella and Vic are."

She started her search of the place she landed. She stuck to the trees on the coastline and quickly determined that she was on an island. Fortunately and unfortunately for her, it was an uninhabited island. "Just great, now what am I going to do," she cried, throwing her hands up in the air, "I have no food source, no idea where I am, no idea where my missing coven mates are, and I shouldn't leave until I have answers to at least one of those questions."

"You know, they say talking to yourself is the first sign of madness," an unfamiliar female voice said.

Maria gasped and whirled around; standing behind her was possibly one of the most unusual women she had ever seen. She was taller than Maria, about average height for a woman and was completely nude, though it wouldn't appear as if she was to normal, human eyesight. Her long curly auburn hair fell down her front to cover her breasts. The woman's pale skin glistened in the sunlight flittering through the trees, shining almost like vampire skin. Her legs were covered in tiny luminescent scales that varied in colors from greenish-blue to deep red. Her ice blue eyes flickered with amusement when she took in Maria gaping at her.

"If someone speaks to you, it's only right that speak back," she said again with humor in her voice.

"Wah, um, sorry, I'm Maria," the vampire replied, "What- I mean, who are you?"

The other woman giggled, "It's alright Maria, seeing as I saw you glittering like the ocean surface in the sunlight a while ago, we can both assume neither of us are humans. My name is Ilayda, and I'm a mermaid. Now can you be so kind to tell me what exactly you are and how you came to be here?"

"Uhh," Maria said, "A mermaid? You'd think I'd be used to these things by now, especially after that last one… Anyway, I'm a vampire, and well, I was propelled here in the middle of a vicious storm last night by the… um, the Leviathan."

Ilayda's eyes widened, "The Leviathan? You got into a struggle with that monster and lived? Whatever vampires are, you must be very strong."

"You don't know what vampires are?" Maria was surprised.

"No, I've never heard of a vampire; though, I'm only a few hundred years old, so I'm technically still a young mermaid, maybe some of the older ones would know."

"You're a few hundred years old and you're still a young mermaid? You're older than I am… Though technically some consider me still young as well."

"Then we are in good company," Ilayda replied, "Now if you come with me, I can take you to where the elders of my kind reside during the day. It's an extremely secluded lagoon on the other side of the island. You can tell me more about vampires while we walk."

"Okay, well you have to promise not to be afraid."

"Why would I be afraid?"

"Most are…"

* * *

The brunette vampire regained consciousness much the same way her two coven members did, groaning. As her mind slowly started to function once more, Bella started to take in what was around her without opening her eyes. She did not feel sunlight on her skin, nor the rough sand or rocks that usually come with washing up onto land. Instead, she feels smooth silk against her front and soft plush pressing up against her back.

Opening her eyes, Bella sat up and looked around, taking in the place she found herself in. The bed she was lying in was covered in red silk sheets, the walls were dark stained hardwood, along with the furniture situated around the room and the bed frame. The room exuded elegance along with sensuality and seduction. The young vampire got up and realized she was nude when the sheet caressed her body while falling onto the bed. Never one to mind forgoing clothing, Bella ignored her nudity and crossed over towards the window to look out. She observed that she was in house, located in a room that was at least three stories off the ground and surrounded by farmland and sparse vegetation; though she could still hear the sound of crashing waves, so she was still near the ocean.

"Now that's a sight that I wouldn't mind seeing more often," Bella heard a sultry female voice say from behind her. The brunette whirled around and crouched down, ready to defend herself. When she caught sight of the unknown female, the world tilted on its axis. Bella drank in the features of this new vampire; long curly strawberry blonde hair accompanied a body built with luscious curves in all of the right places. She stood only slightly taller than Bella, though her long legs seemed to go on for miles. The brunette vampire didn't understand what was happening to her. She wanted to dominate this vampire and claim her as her own, but her senses told her that the other was much older than her which caused brought forth feelings of submission in her as she stared into the other's golden eyes.

_Wait a minute,_ Bella back tracked, _Golden eyes? My mate is an animal drinker? No way, no way am I standing for this! _"Who are you?" Bella hissed out.

The other vampire just smirked in amusement and let her eyes trail up and down Bella's nude body. "Well I wouldn't mind getting acquainted first if you choose to remain in such a state, though if you do, there are much better ways to get to know each other I assure you," she mused, grinning wickedly at Bella.

The brunette glared at the blonde, barely stopping herself from moving her body to allow her mate to see more of her. Bella tamped down her desires and natural instincts to mate and locked them behind her shield. She had given in to animalistic lust when she was human and regretted it even as a vampire. She was not making the same mistake again, especially not for an animal drinker. "Where did you take my furs? And how did I get here?"

"I have your… Furs, right here," she said, holding the scraps of lioness's furs. Bella grabbed them and slipped them on, staring defiantly at the older vampire the whole time. "Mhm, didn't think it was possible for you to become any more attractive, but you look absolutely delectable," she purred.

Bella just glared, "Answer one of my other questions."

The strawberry blonde just hummed. "Well," she drawled out, "I was out taking a morning stroll on my private beach, contemplating going on a hunt when I found you washed up on the shores. I thought you were a dead human at first since your skin wasn't shining and no heartbeat, but when I touched you to pick you up I knew you had to be a vampire. A most attractive, unusual vampire."

"Did you see anyone else?" Bella asked, alarmed.

"No, were their others with you?"

Bella remained silent, worried about her mom and Maria.

The other vampire hummed again, and walked closer to Bella. "Don't come any closer," Bella ordered, moving back closer to the window.

"Nervous?" She teased.

"Just wary of strange vampires," Bella returned, _Especially vampires with golden eyes._

"Come now, I'm not a stranger. I brought you here and cleaned you up, and you still call me a stranger?"

"You haven't exactly answered me when I asked for your name."

"Right after you dear."

Bella glared and the troublesome vampire, not at all liking the impression her supposed 'mate' was making. "My friends call me Bella," she bit out, "I am Isabella to you however."

"Bella," the other one breathed out, "It means beautiful in Italian, how fitting."

"That's Isabella to you," the brunette hissed.

"Well then _Isabella_," she stressed, "I am Tanya, Tanya Denali. Now why don't you and I get better acquainted with each other shall we?"

Bella glowered at the other vampire- Tanya- and scrutinized her. _What kind of messed up world did that creature toss me into?_**  
**

* * *

**Review Please, longer reviews keep me inspired**

******Our favorite coven has been separated, whatever shall they do... Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, the Leviathan, World Turtle and Fairies all in the same place isn't actually an actual myth. Each one are myths themselves, just not together. I needed something massive to separate the trio (the Leviathan) and some place to send Victoria that would be difficult for her to leave (weird World Turtle). The fairies and sprites were just something extra I threw in. And as for Maria and the mermaids and what will happen with them, well, we'll explore that some more the next chapter.**

**So, Bella's finally met Tanya. That hasn't gone well has it, hmm, of course, did any of you expect it would? It'll get worse before it gets better, especially with Bella's dislike of vampires who drink animal blood. Anyway, I used Tanya's description from the books, because she's Strawberry blonde there, but pale blonde in the movie, those two aren't anywhere close to the same. I made her a little taller though. It says she 5'5" and that's not exactly how I imagine her in my head. She has such a powerful presence, both as a 1000 year old vampire and as a succubus, she needed a little more height. Just a few inches though, it's not really a big deal, but just for reference, here's the characters how I line them up. Victoria's the same height as Tanya (around 5'8") Bella's average (5'5"/5'6") Maria is shorter (5'1"/5'2"). **

**So what do you think will happen between Bella and Tanya now? I know of course, I am the author and I already have it planned, but I'm curious as to what y'all think.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: This could technically be considered half of a chapter, since it was supposed to be longer. I decided to split it up since I'm changing POV's for the next chapter, give you guys some more insight into the mind of one of the characters. **

**And for anyone afraid of the OC's, I'm treating them all the same way. I write them out after a chapter, but leave myself the option to bring them back later in the story when I need them... Does an animal count as an OC? I've been wondering about that.**

******Anyway, review.**

******Chapter is unedited, not proof-read, and I haven't been feeling well, so be warned, you might see hints of NyQuil**

**The Wild Ones**

**Chapter 7**

"Strange one, oh strange one," Victoria heard Ayla calling for her.

"Over here," Victoria called from her spot perched in a tree looking out at the ocean.

"Oh hello strange one," Ayla said, flitting in front of the vampire, "I've been looking for you."

"You know I have a name Ayla."

"Oh, then let's hear it."

The vampire rolled her eyes. "It's Victoria," she said, "My name is Victoria."

"Well then, strange Victoria," Ayla said. The redhead let out an exasperated sigh at this, which the tiny fairy completely missed. "I talked to the elders about you, told them I saved you from the guardian," she continued.

"Let me guess, they want to meet me," Victoria surmised, leaning her head back against the tree's trunk.

"Oh no, don't be silly strange Victoria," Ayla giggled, "You probably wouldn't be able to see them anyway. The only reason you could see Calder and I is because we're still young fairies, our cloaking magic is weak. You'd never be able to see an elder."

"Okay…" the vampire said slowly, "What did they want?"

"Besides giving me a mean talking to," the fairy pouted, "They wanted me to explain some things to you before we take you to where you're supposed to be."

"Such as?"

At this, Ayla looked a little sheepish. "Well, as you might or might not be aware, we are creatures of the Fae, creatures of spirit."

"I'm from Ireland," Victoria pointed out, "We have many legends of your kind or other wee folk."

"Ah, that's interesting, you'll have to tell me about them sometime."

"Ayla, focus, what did the elders want you to tell me?"

The small fairy blinked, "Oh right, as creatures of the Fae, we're bound by different laws. Laws that bind creatures of earth, like you, don't always apply to us or the places we reside."

"What does that mean exactly?" Victoria asked, trying to be patient with the small creature.

"Um, well… It means that when we get you back to where you belong, a lot more time will have passed than here…" she replied nervously.

"What?!" Victoria cried, "What do you mean?"

"Time doesn't really apply here," Ayla said hurriedly, "It's more about you ended up when you need to be somewhere, not exactly when you think you need to be somewhere."

"Does that mean I might end up in the past?" Victoria gritted her teeth.

"No no no," Ayla replied hurriedly, "Only creatures of the Fae can pass through time like that. I'm just saying that instead of being a few days later from when the guardian got you, it might be a few weeks or month, I'm not really sure."

"What?!"  
Ayla flinched, "I'm sorry."

Victoria sighed, "It's not your fault, you were trying to do the right thing and didn't know enough on how to do that."

"Yeah," the young fairy admitted, "I'm still learning about the world outside. I mean, I never heard of an… oh what did the elders call you… oh, a vampire, I've never heard of that before."

Victoria hummed, "How long until we reach the surface?"

"Shouldn't be too long," the fairy replied, "The guardian is kicking up a storm to disguise the turtle surfacing."

"Is that what causes storms out here?"

Ayla shrugged, "Sometimes not always."

They waited in silence for a few moments before Victoria decided to speak again. "Where's your little friend, what's his name, Calder?"

"Oh he's in class. He's a water sprite, so he has different hours than I do," Ayla replied distractedly, looking outside of the barrier, "Oh, we're almost there!" She turned around to look at the vampire. "I'm not going to say goodbye strange Victoria, since we'll probably meet again, once I finish training away."

Victoria gave the fairy a small smile, "I'll miss you, sort of, even though you get on my nerves."

The fairy looked adorably confused for a moment before shaking her head. "All right strange Victoria," she said, "It's time for you to go. Now, just close your eyes and don't panic."

"What do you mea- Wha," Victoria sputtered, coughing and splashing around in the ocean. She whirled around, looking for any sign of the giant creature or the fairies' disappearing islands and didn't see any trace of either of them, only an island off in the distance. "What just happened?" The redhead muttered to herself as she looked around at the calm ocean.

She started swimming towards the island that she could see, grumbling the whole way about stupid fairies, sprites and disappearing islands. When Victoria pulled herself out of the ocean up on the beach, she realized that she was sparkling in the sunlight. "This isn't good," Vic murmured, "Bella is either to far away, or something's wrong."

A twig broke behind her in the forest and she whirled around, spotting a very unusual woman. "Who are you?" Victoria demanded.

"You look just her," the woman murmured, staring at Victoria's sparkling skin, "Well, not just like her, but your skin sparkles just like her."

"Who?" The vampire asked again.

"Maria," the woman responded, "She was my friend, but I made a mistake and now she…" She placed a hand over her mouth and started sobbing, crystal blue tears cascading down her cheeks.

"What happened to Maria?" Victoria whispered, dread filling her voice, "And who, or what are you?"

The other woman barked out a laugh, "Inquisitive, just like Maria. My name is Ilayda, and I'm a mermaid."

Victoria just stared in disbelief. "I just can't catch a break," she muttered to herself, "I'm guessing if you know Maria, you know what she- what we are?"

Ilayda nodded, "I met Maria almost one annual ago. She told me that she was a vampire, but I didn't know what that was at first, then she explained what vampires were- well, are I guess. I decided to take her to where the others of my kind like to frequent during the day, and I guess that is where I made my mistake."

"One annual," Victoria murmured, "A year, it's been a year? What happened to Maria, what's wrong with her?"

The mermaid motioned for the vampire to follow her into the forest. "I don't know how adept you are with mythology," Ilayda whispered, "But you know that mermaids aren't exactly always nice in many of the legends."

"I know about Sirens that lure men to their deaths and that's about it," the vampire admitted.

"Well, that's part of it. There are different types of mermaids," said mermaid continued, "There are, well, Sirens of course who lure men in, but then there are mermaids that rescue lost souls at sea, well try to anyway." Ilayda scrunched her face up, "I'm the latter kind; I prefer help people rather than pull them under."

"What does this have to do with Maria?"

"Maria told me that as a vampire, she needs to drink blood, preferably human blood. The mainland or other islands are too far away to get to, so I thought that maybe my Siren cousins could get her some humans to drink from before she headed out. I didn't think that through all the way…" the mermaid trailed off.

Victoria started to lose her patience with the other supernatural. "Just tell me what is wrong with her," she said, gritting her teeth.

Ilayda sighed, "You best come with me and see for yourself. Stay really quiet though, and stuff these in your ears." She handed Victoria two small spongy wads. "It's dead coral, it won't keep the sounds out but it'll deaden them."

"Why is it important to keep the sounds out?" The vampire asked, picking up the coral.

"Just a precaution, now put them in and follow me." Victoria followed Ilayda through the forest to a hidden lagoon on the other side of the island. The mermaid motioned for the vampire to climb up one of the trees surrounding the lagoon in order to get a better view. When Victoria got to the top, she had to stifle a gasp. Maria was lounging on a rock in the middle of the lagoon, stark naked with blood all around her. Various mermaids were swimming around her in the water, or laying with her on the rock, touching her and pouring more blood on her.

She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see Ilayda motioning for her to follow her down and back into the forest away from the lagoon. Victoria followed her down and back into the woods. She wrenched out the sponges when Ilayda motioned it was okay. "What is wrong with her?" Victoria asked.

"The Sirens got her with their song," Ilayda replied, "She's in a daze, it's how they attract people. She's been like that for this past year. I've tried to get to her, but I'm not strong enough."

"So to break their spell, we just have to get her far enough away so that it doesn't effect her anymore…" Victoria thought for a moment, "Why don't you distract them while I get her."

"We should wait for twilight," Ilayda said, "They'll start migrating down to the city for the night. They usually take Maria with them. They knew more about vampires than I, so they knew she didn't need to breathe."

"Ilayda, it's okay, you didn't know what they would do, and this is probably as much of Maria's fault as theirs."

"What do you mean?"

"The Sirens' song is probably similar to when Vampire's dazzle people, it makes prey easier to catch, but it only works on people who are susceptible, people who want it on some level. Some vampires chose not to use this ability when hunting, preferring the challenge. I'm just assuming that's how the sirens' ability works."

The mermaid nodded, "That does make sense, now how are we going to do this?"

They spent the next few hours until twilight planning and watching the sirens in the lagoon. Victoria kept the sponges in her ears even though she felt certain that the song would be no problem for her. She observed the sirens as they flitted and played about in the lagoon.

"They're all sirens," Ilayda murmured to her, "They like to come out during the day, while mermaids frequent this lagoon at night."

"Why are you out then?" Victoria asked, "And why are you on land for that matter?"

Sadness flickered behind Ilayda's eyes for a brief moment. "I was banished from my home," she said, "But that's a different story. This island is my home now."

Victoria was going to say something else but decided not to by the look on the mermaid's face. "Look it's getting dark, time to go," she said instead.

Ilayda nodded and headed towards the water. The vampire watched as the mermaid drew the sirens away from her coven mate. Victoria leaped from the tree and landed next to Maria. She grabbed the prone vampire and her furs underneath her and swam back to the island. Victoria carried her zoned out coven mate to the other side of the island where she would be far enough away from the sirens' song.

"Maria," Victoria hissed, slapping the Hispanic vampire repeatedly on the face, "Wake up, snap out of it."

The shorter vampire blinked her eyes a couple of times, the film coating her red eyes slowly disappearing. "Wha- what happened?" She said, slowly sitting up. Maria placed a hand to her head and looked down. "Why am I naked, what happened to me?" She looked up and saw Victoria there. "Vic? When did you get here?"

Victoria smiled at her sister and coven mate, "Just a little while ago, what was the last thing you remember?"

Maria blinked again. "Um," she started, "I met this strange woman… Ilayda? She's a… mermaid I think? She took me to speak to some others about getting some humans for me to eat while I tried to find you and Bella, but that is the last thing I remember. What happened?"

"Apparently you've spent the last year in a haze of blood and sex," Victoria deadpanned.

"What?!"

"It's all my fault," Ilayda's voice came from behind. The mermaid ran up to them and sat down next to Maria. "I shouldn't have taken you to see my Siren cousins; they trapped you with their songs."

"A whole year," Maria whispered in disbelief. She turned towards Victoria and asked her, "And where have you been?"  
"It's complicated," she said, "I'll tell you later, but right now we need to get off this island and find Bella. Something's wrong, her shield is no longer working."

"She could just be out of range…" Maria started.

"That could be, but I still feel like something is wrong."

"Who's Bella?" Ilayda asked.

"Our coven mate," Maria said, "We got separated the day before I washed up on this island. We have to leave here to find her."

Ilayda nodded her head, "I understand, I didn't expect you to stay here forever. If you head Southwest of here, you'll get to the large island; you might find her there or at one of the smaller islands on the way."

"Why don't you come with us Ilayda?" Victoria asked, "I mean, you said that you've been banished from you're home, there's really nothing for you here."

The mermaid smiled sadly, "I would love to go with you, but I can't." She looked down at herself, "I can't blend in as well as you can, and this island is my home. It's really the only home I've ever had."

"We understand," Maria said, "But if you ever change your mind…"

"I'll look you up," Ilayda smiled, "As long as you're near water, I can find you."

Maria washed off all of the dried blood on her body before putting her furs back on. The two vampires bid their friend goodbye and started swimming to what they hoped with Australia.

They swam for a few hours and eventually spotted the small continent in the distance. "How are we going to find her?" Maria asked as they approached the land, "And how do we even know if she wound up down here?"

"We don't," Victoria said after a minute, "We just have to try."

"All right," Maria let out a sigh, "From what I remember about Australia is that most of the population is centered on the coast, so if we just stick to searching the coastline and see if you stop sparkling, we should find her that way."

They reached land and climbed out of the water. The sun was just starting to peak out over the horizon. "We should snatch some clothing to keep covered while we search, we can't exactly search at night since we're judging by if I stop sparkling or not."

"Ugh," Maria groaned, "Clothes…"

* * *

"Vic, we've been searching for weeks, what if she's not here?" Maria moaned, leaning against a tree, "And I still don't feel well."

"You basically gorged yourself on blood for a year, of course you're not going to feel well for a while," Victoria snapped, "And we have to keep looking, I feel like she's here somewhere."

"You're heartless," the Hispanic vampire muttered, "and you feel something? What does that even mean?"

"Mother's intuition."

"How did I know you would say that…" Maria groaned, "Can we stop running for a minute, I need to sit down." The shorter vampire collapsed under a tree, clutching her stomach. "I didn't feel this horrible swimming here a few weeks ago, why do I feel like this now?"

"It was probably that last human you snacked on a few days ago."

"He was going to rape that girl," Maria defended, "He was begging to be eaten." She looked up and froze. "Vic," she started, "You're not sparkling."

Victoria looked down at her diamond hard skin and saw that she wasn't sparkling in full sunlight. "Bella's near here," she realized.

The two took off running, much slower than normal though because of Maria's stomachache. They caught the younger vampire's scent soon and followed it. "What's that noise?" Maria asked, hearing a strange noise coming from the direction where they were going.

"It's Bella," Victoria said, "She's… screaming? No, that's not right… It sounds like she's angry."

They entered a small clearing and found the youngest vampire in their small coven ripping apart the remains of a house. "Bella…" Victoria said slowly, approaching the enraged vampire.

The brunette whirled around and saw her mother standing behind her. "Mom," she whispered, her black eyes fading slowly into her normal red-blue eyes.

"Oh Bella," the redhead murmured, embracing her daughter. Victoria shushed the brunette as she sobbed tearlessly into her mother's shoulder.

"I missed you Mom," Bella said into her shoulder.

"I've miss you too," Victoria whispered, stroking her hair.

Bella released her mother and looked over at Maria. "I've missed you too short stuff," she said weakly, hugging the Hispanic vampire.

"Missed you too sis," Maria replied, flinching a bit as the taller brunette hugged her.

"What's wrong?" Bella asked, noticing the flinch.

"Just a stomach ache," Maria answered, "It's a long story, but what I'm more interested in is what happened here?"

The brunette's eyes darkened slightly in anger before sadness entered them and her whole being seemed to slump. "I should've know better," she whispered, sitting on top of a collapsed wall, "I mean, I know what our Amazon sisters told us about them and what their like but I just couldn't control the desire anymore…"

"Bella, Bella," Victoria said, sitting down next to her daughter, "You're not making any sense, just start at the beginning."

"I met my mate," she said after taking a deep breath.

"You're mate?!" Maria cried while Victoria growled. "Where is he?"

"It's not a he, it's a she," the brunette continued weakly.

"That doesn't matter," Maria informed her. She was about to say more when Victoria cut her off.

"What happened Bella?" She asked slowly, tilting her daughter's head up to look into her eyes.

"Her name was Tanya, Tanya Denali, and she was/is an animal drinker," Bella's voice was only a breath on the wind at this point, "I met her a little over a year ago. She found me washed up on the beach after our encounter with the Leviathan. I realized she was my mate when I first saw her, but when I saw her eyes and realized she was an animal drinker, I was immediately put off. Should've listened to my head and not my heart in this instance, just ended up being hurt in the end."

"What happened Bella?" Maria inquired.

"It started a year ago, when I realized she was my mate," Bella started, "At that point, everything about her grated on my nerves, even though my body longed for her touch. She could tell that I wanted her, but I didn't realize that she didn't know why…"

* * *

**1 Year Ago**

_Bella glared and the troublesome vampire, not at all liking the impression her supposed 'mate' was making. "My friends call me Bella," she bit out, "I am Isabella to you however."_

_ "Bella," the other one breathed out, "It means beautiful in Italian, how fitting."_

_ "That's Isabella to you," the brunette hissed._

_ "Well then Isabella," she stressed, "I am Tanya, Tanya Denali. Now why don't you and I get better acquainted with each other shall we?"_

_ Bella glowered at the other vampire- Tanya- and scrutinized her. What kind of messed up world did that creature toss me into?_

"Don't even think about it," Bella hissed when Tanya started moving closer to her.

The other vampire pouted, "You're no fun."

Bella rolled her eyes, "I don't trust yellow eyed vampire. Now if you want to be of use to me, tell me where I am."

Tanya rolled her eyes. "You're in Australia," the vegetarian vampire told her, "This is my vacation house."

"Vacation house?"

"I have a few around the world," Tanya replied off-handedly, "I keep one down here because there are a few Aussi nomads that I, well, like to visit occasionally if you know what I mean." She winked and sashayed off out of the room and down the stairs.

Bella tamped down the internal jealousy that sparked up when she heard the other vampire's words. _She may be my mate, but that doesn't mean I have to like her, or even mate with her,_ Bella thought to herself, _She's an animal drinker! No way I can be mated to her._

The brunette vampire wanted to stay in her room and just stare out the window, but her insatiable curiosity got the better of her. She poked around the room, looking in cabinets and closets. She found clothes that looked to be a few sizes to big for her in the dresser. _Probably would be a good idea if I put some regular clothes on,_ _would give that… woman, less to stare at anyway._

The brunette pulled out an oversized t-shirt and a pair of jean shorts. She took her furs off, knowing that they would be uncomfortable to wear under the regular clothes, and cringed when she pulled on the cotton and jean material. "How do people wear these?" She muttered, rolling the shorts up to make them fit better.

Once she finished putting on her borrowed clothes, Bella turned and gave the room one more glance. It wasn't richly furnished, like rooms in the Egyptian coven's home were, but it wasn't rustic as well. The bed was large, a King size probably with rich silky sheets. _Why does a vampire need a bed?_ There was a bookshelf in the corner next to the bed that held a collection of classic books in paperback. As she was looking around, Bella realized something about the room, _Who keeps clothes in a guest room?_ A slightly unsettling thought crossed her mind that also made her body hum in delight that this room was Tan- _No, that woman's! _– room.

Bella knew that she couldn't stay in the room all day. She wanted to go out and search for Victoria and Maria but she had no idea of where she was in Australia or where they ended up. They might not have even made it to Australia, washed up on one of the other islands in the further north.

Reluctantly, Bella left the room to explore the rest of the house. The only other thing on the same floor as she was one was a large, ornate bathroom and storage space, so the brunette continued downstairs to the second floor. She found several other bedrooms on the second floor, along with another bathroom that seemed to be more along the lines of guest bedrooms and bathrooms than where she was on the third floor.

Bella found Tanya on the first floor lounging on the couch reading a book. "Hey," Tanya said when she saw the other vampire, "You look good in my clothes."

The brunette rolled her eyes, and started looking around the living room. "Why do you have a kitchen?" She asked, spotting a refrigerator in another room, "And a dining room?"

"I guess to seem normal in case any humans come over," Tanya replied casually, "Plus the fridge is good for storing blood."

Bella opened the door of the fridge and saw bags of blood in both the cool and frozen section. She took a cautious sniff of the blood and curled in lips in disgust. "Animal blood," she hissed, hastily placing the bag back where she picked it up.

"So you do know what type of blood I drink," Tanya commented, "I was wondering about that. If you know about the animal drinker diet, why don't you try it?"

"I would never drink from an animal," Bella stated firmly.

"Well that's a very firm answer, any reason why?"

"I have my reasons, none of which you have any right to know since we just met."

Tanya sighed, "Look, I feel like we got off on the wrong foot somewhere…"

"How about looking at me like I was a piece of meat?" Bella retorted.

"All right, I concede to that, but part of it is you're fault too, judging me just because my eyes are gold."

Bella looked down, feeling slightly guilty because of her behavior. "I've only ever heard bad things about animal drinkers," she explained.

Tanya looked confused. "That is odd," she said slowly, "But understandable I guess, and I'm assuming I'm the first one you've actually met?" When Bella nodded, Tanya continued, "Then how about we start over?"

Bella thought about it for a few minutes. "It would be nice to be on friendlier terms. I have no idea what happened to my coven mates. We were caught in a storm swimming here and were separated." She left out the part about the sea monster. Something told her that not all vampires know about a whole other world of supernatural creatures.

"You can stay here while you look, or I can help you."

The brunette thought for a moment. "Alright," she conceded, "I can agree to that."

The strawberry blonde vampire smiled, "Well then, I'm Tanya, Tanya Denali." She stuck out her hand towards the other vampire.

Bella looked at it hesitantly before stretching out her own hand and grasping it. "Isabella," she gulped, trying to ignore the tingles of electricity racing up her arm, "You can call me Bella."

* * *

******So I'm guessing you guys know something happened between Bella and Tanya in the year that is missing, I mean it's kinda obvious. Next chapter will probably be that year. Not the whole thing, cuz that would be boring, but moments in time that are important to their relationship. **

******It's also kind of a cop out how I dealt with the time difference for Victoria, but it's part of fairy lore. Fairies are Fae, they exist outside of our reality, time doesn't concern them. If anyone has watched the series Gargoyles, the second season explores this a little since Avalon, home of the fairies, sends them where and when they need to be, never really where they want to go. **

******And if anyone is concerned, no Maria was never hurt during her year of captivity by the sirens. She basically had a year lost in bloodlust and sex. It wasn't really traumatizing for her since that's how I imagined she spent her times in the wars. This go 'round was... coerced, but she wasn't hurt.**

******Also, for those wondering where Tanya's house is located, I looked up a topography map before I picked a region, then looked up the names. She lives in what is called the Northern Territory, off of the Gulf of Carpentaria. I've never been to Australia, I just picked an area that seemed good. It's away from the populated areas in the southeast portion of the country, since she doesn't feed off of humans.**

******Anyway, review please. Next chapter will take awhile since I'm trying to make it natural. I'm trying not to rush things between them, even though, as you can tell, Bella is being torn apart by her desire to mate and her dislike of animal drinkers. It'll be a difficult process for me because I want nothing more for them to be together and happy... But they can't, not yet... :'(**


	8. Author's Note

**A/N: This isn't a chapter, but I wanted to let you guys know what was up. I am working on the next chapter, but I'm a little stuck. I'm writing, but only like a paragraph at a time. It'll take a while since I'm trying to build a relationship between Tanya and Bella, and relationships take time. I'm also trying to move in RL, so it might be a while before I get to post the chapter. Do you know what moving is like? If I knew it was this bad, I wouldn't ever do it... Like ever... But I am, so I must move. I'll hopefully have lots of free time after since I won't have much to do while I wait for school to start.**

**I don't like doing this AN chapters, but I figured I should give y'all a heads up. Also, if anyone has anything they'd like to see Bella and Tanya go through, I'd be interested in hearing them. I have it planned for the most part, the dating part is a little difficult since, well, they don't have the same diet at the moment... Should prove to be interesting. Anyway, that's me, I would be grateful for words of encouragement at this point. Don't worry about reviewing, I won't delete this author's note until I finish the story at some point.**

**Til next chapter**

**Artistia**


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: Holy crap, what is this thing on steroids... Anyway, just wanted to tell you guys that I am moved and in my new apartment, all comfy like. I start school and my new job in two weeks, so I'll be back on sporadic updates. **

**Alrighty, now the skinny on this chapter. It's written in first person, from Bella's POV. She's really confused and conflicted through most of this chapter, because she's trying to figure out what to do. I wasn't able to get a good read on Tanya's personality since it wasn't from her POV, but you'll get a little bit here and there. It's a really long chapter, if you haven't noticed, and before you ask, yes it was the year in between. "Is a year long enough to develop a relationship?" Well, yes and no, you'll see at the end of the chapter. It's written as a series of important moments that happened in the year they were together. These were the most important moments that happened and caused development and or tension between them. It was the best way I knew how to get through this without dragging it out for several chapters or I might have never updated again...**

**Anyway, I'm sorry for any mistakes, I've been typing really fast on this chapter so I might not have been able to catch most of them.**

**More from me at the end of the chapter**

**Chapter 8**

**Bella's POV**

**Month 1**

It had only been a few days since I had last fed, both on blood and energy, but I could feel the familiar signs of lethargy and moodiness that came with needing to feed on both of them. It was probably the stress from the storm and everything that happened that caused the dramatic drain in energy and desire to feed. Although I preferred to take energy from another vampire since it lasted longer than energy taken from humans, I didn't know or trust Tanya well enough to take energy from her.

"Tanya," I started, looking back to where she was on the couch, "Which way is the nearest city? I need to feed and I want to look around for a bit."

"Head east until you hit the coast and then travel south, most of the major cities in Australia are port cities. Looking for humans?"

"Yes," I answered slowly, "What else would I be looking for to feed off of?"

"Oh nothing," Tanya replied quickly, "Just wondering."

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously for a minute before I shook it off and headed out, following the directions that the other woman gave me. Eventually after a few hours of running, I came to a largely populated area. I kept running quickly to avoid detection from humans while I search for someone to eat. I quickly found a drunkard behind what appeared to be a bar. My thoughts that this man wasn't one of the nicest people in the world were confirmed when he tried to attack me when he saw me. I quickly overpowered him and sunk my teeth into his neck, draining his blood with my mouth while draining his energy with my hands.

Once I finished eating, I picked up the body and flashed far enough away from town so I could dispose of it properly. I didn't have any matches or flints, so I buried it deeply until I could come back and destroy it. I still felt an ache in me that signaled that I didn't get enough energy from the human. I sighed, "What am I going to do?"

I sat down under the tree where I buried the body and sighed. "Now I'm talking to myself," I murmured, "Things just couldn't get any better than this." My head lulled back against the tree and I closed my eyes, thinking. Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind that caused me to jump back up again. "What if I just casually bump into a human and just take a little of their energy, just enough to probably make them sleepy," I muttered excitedly to myself. "I would have to interact with a lot of humans to get the amount of energy that I need to keep my shield up and operating." I looked down at the clothes I was wearing. "At least I had the foresight to put on something that would seem normal…" I trailed off when I saw that I didn't have any shoes on. I thought for a moment before shaking my head, "Not gonna happen."

I ran back into the city and casually strolled around, trying to look like a tourist in order to make myself seem less conspicuous as I discreetly touched as many locals as I could. The first person I pulled energy from, I took a little too much as they fainted on me. It was better than killing them, but I still needed to learn to control the ability. "This is what I get for getting to complacent, feeding off of other immortals this long to make sure I got the energy I needed, pah," I grumbled as I propped the human up on the wall so that he wouldn't hurt himself when he woke back up.

I kept wandering around the city, reigning in the urge to take more energy as I brushed by people in the streets or in a few of the shops. More than once I had people offering to give me shoes, but I told them that I preferred not to wear shoes. There were also a few people, both men and women who hit on me as I took some of their energy.

"Now I feel better," I murmured as I ran back to where I buried the body. I lifted a lighter from one of the stupider humans who hit on me. After burning the corpse, I pocketed the lighter for future endeavors. I started back towards Tanya's house but stopped halfway there.

Looking around quickly to make sure that no one was around, I threw up my hands and screamed in frustration. "What in the hell am I going to do?!" I yelled. "Tanya and I may start getting along, but she is so infuriating. What did she mean if I was looking for humans to feed off of, she better not be trying to get me to drink animal blood, that is not happening." I scrubbed my face with my hands, groaning. "But I just can't stop thinking about her," I whispered, unshed tears thickening my voice, "What am I going to do?" I collapsed heavily beneath a large tree and stayed there until long after twilight. I looked up through the leaves and branches and saw the starts twinkling in the sky. "I miss you mom," I whispered, "I don't know what to do…"

**Month 2**

I sat in one of the recliners in the living room reading one of the many books Tanya had lying around the house. Normally, I would be out exploring new terrain, searching everywhere for signs of Maria or Mom. Tanya tracked me down while I was in the wilderness and pulled me back to the house with her. Apparently a large storm front was rolling in, and while side effects of the weather, like flooding, mudslides and rockslides would have no effect on me, they were unpleasant to experience. While living in the Amazon I had gotten stuck a few times in mudslides and digging my way out was not pleasant.

The 'vegetarian' vampire, what animal drinkers refer to themselves as, and I have been getting along better, though I have yet to understand how or better yet why we're mates.

I felt the familiar inklings of lethargy start to seep into my granite bones and I realized it was time for me to feed again, both blood and energy. I shut my book with a loud clap and placed it on the coffee table in the center of the room. "You're not going back out in that rain storm are you?" Tanya asked from her place on the couch.

"I have to feed," I said, pointing towards my blackened eyes that had a rim of electric blue, glowing slightly.

"I have bagged blood stocked in the fridge if you want some," the other vampire suggested, "It would keep you from having to go out in the rain. I don't think anyone is out in this mess."

"I told you before," I hissed, "I don't drink animal blood." I bolted out the door into the rain. I picked a direction and ran, trying to escape the rain clouds. Eventually I out ran them and reached a city, a different one than the first time I went hunting. Quickly finding a criminal prowling about the edge of the night, I took both his blood and energy, lulling him into the embrace of death. Afterwards, to get the rest of the energy I needed, I decided to scope out one of the local movie theaters. From what I remember the last time I went to the movies in college, people liked to go to them at night, so I was sure that I could find enough people.

I found one and slipped into the different theaters, brushing up against the people viewing the movies. I entered one theater screening a horror movie and found enough people to steal energy from to ease the ache in my bones. Exiting the theater, I briefly scanned the list of other movies being shown and saw that a Disney movie had come out a few days ago.

"Fox and the Hound," I murmured, staring at the title, "Sounds interesting." I slipped into the theater unseen and found that the movie had just started as the traditional Disney castle had just appeared on the screen. I found a seat and was soon engrossed in the story of the forbidden friendship between a fox and a bloodhound. The story evolved and grew as outside forces and their very natures started to tear the friends apart. If I had still been human, tears would've been streaking down my face by the end of the movie.

I fled the movie theater as soon as the movie was over and slowly started to head back to Tanya's house. At the end of the film, the fox and the hound were able to set aside their natures for just a minute and work together, be friends again. They didn't forget who they were; it just didn't matter. It made me believe that maybe Tanya and I could come to an understanding. Even though she's an animal drinker, she's still my mate, the only one I'll ever have now that I've found her. Maybe, given time, we might actually work together.

I snorted at that thought. Something about Tanya's personality irritated me, something beyond her being an animal drinker. She seems like she's used to getting her own way, anything and anyone. Those types of people annoy me the most, the ones who think they are somehow better than everyone else and so they get everything without even trying.

Tanya has been trying to seduce me since I 'woke up' in her bed almost a month ago. I can't tell if she's trying because she feels the mating pull, or she just wants to 'sleep' with me. "Arggh," I yelled out into the wilderness, "This is getting me no where. I almost wish I had never met Tanya." I crouched down and clutched my head in my hands. "I wish Mom and Maria were here, they would know what to do." I stayed crouched down in the dark in the middle of nowhere. I heard vampire footsteps approaching me from downwind, and I got into a defensive stance to see who was coming.

When I saw the strawberry blonde head of my mate glittering in the full moon, I felt irritation, happiness, then irritation again at the happiness I was feeling at seeing her. "What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to keep my voice inquisitive, and not accusatory.

"I was out hunting and I heard you yell out," Tanya replied, approaching me slowly, "And I was concerned." I raised my eyebrow at her, and she actually looked a little sheepish. "Okay, okay," she conceded, "I wanted to apologize, I shouldn't have tried to push animal blood on you. I can see you like the way you live, and have your reasons for killing humans, or not killing animals. I can understand that."

I resumed my crouched position and spread out on the ground, looking up at the stars. Tanya sat down next to me, and tilted her head up to look at the sky as well. "I think we keep getting off on the wrong foot," I said after a minute, not looking at the other vampire.

Tanya laughed, a sweet musical bell like sound that caressed my ears softly that made me bite the inside of my cheek to distract myself. "I think we do," she said quietly.

"So what should we do about that?" I asked, propping myself up on my elbows.

"How about we start over?" Tanya suggested, looking at me for the first time. The flirtatious, suggestive look that was usually present in her eyes was absent when she looked at me.

I took a deep breath. "It'll take me a while to ignore the fact that you drink from animals. Nothing I have heard about animal drinkers is good." If Tanya left my choice of diet alone, the least I could do is leave hers alone as well.

"Well I'll just have to change your mind," Tanya replied smiling.

We sat in silence for a while, staring out at the sky. The beginning rays of dawn were just starting to turn the sky a light pink on the horizon when I decided to speak again. "So what do we do now?" I asked.

"I guess we just start to get to know each other," Tanya answered, standing up.

"Alright," I said, standing up as well, "How about this, you ask me one question and then I'll ask you one question, and we'll decide if we want to answer the question or how much we want to answer it."

"Sounds fair, may I go first?" At my nod, Tanya continued, "There's something that I've been dying to know since I first saw you. Why are you eyes blue and why don't you sparkle in the sunlight?"

"That's two questions," I pointed out, but decided to answer anyway, in the vaguest way possible. "It's part of my gift," I said casually.

When I didn't say anything else, Tanya shot me an unbelieving look. "That's all I'm going to get?"

"For now," I replied, "Now for my turn." I thought for a few minutes, skimming quickly over all of the questions I wanted to ask her in my mind. Most of them were inappropriate or too personal for the tentative relationship we had forged, and some of them I wasn't sure that I wanted the answer. I settled on a question that seemed safe and voice it. "You said that the house was your vacation house, so where do you normally live?"

"Oh, my more permanent home is in Alaska, Denali Alaska actually," Tanya said.

"The Alaskan territory?"

She laughed again, "It's a state now actually. You've been out of it for a while haven't you?"

"Well, I haven't actually been any where to hear anything about what is going on at home," I said, "And I think that is enough questions for right now."

"Fair enough," Tanya said, "I'm gonna head back to the house. Are you coming?"

"No," I replied shaking my head, "I think I'm just going to stay out here for a while, watch the sun rise and such."

"Must be nice, not having to worry about sparkling in the sunlight," Tanya murmured.

"It has come in handy on certain occasions," I returned, staring out at the slowly lightening sky. I heard the strawberry blonde's footsteps retreat in the direction of the house, and I gave a little sigh of relief when she was out of hearing distance. The other vampire made me feel things that I didn't think I was ready to feel.

The sun crested over the hill and bathed every thing in a soft golden light. I took in an unneeded breath in the light of a new day. "I can do this," I murmured to myself, "Tanya's my mate, whether I like it or not. I should at least give her a chance."

I jumped up and started running back towards the house, ready to try at least a tentative friendship with my supposed mate.

**Month 3**

"I can't believe you talked me into getting one of these things in my vacation house," Tanya complained as she pulled out the cords to set up her new TV.

"You shouldn't have told me that Disney had released more moves," I retorted, looking at my stack of movies fondly. I picked up the box and looked inside curiously. Tanya told me that these black things are called VHS, videotapes. The movie is recorded on the tape in the box, and when the box is put into another box called a VHS player, the tape is spun and the movie plays. "This is so exciting," I squealed bouncing on my heels.

"You could help me you know," Tanya said indignantlyas she sorted through the different wires to hook up the TV and the VHS player.

"I am helping," I answered, "I'm trying to decide which one to watch first." The strawberry blonde had purchased every animated Disney movie that had been made up until now, not including Fox and the Hound since it had just come out into theaters. "There are so many."

"There's just a little over 20," the other vampire said from behind the TV.

I huffed, "Yes, but there are so many different kinds. Should we watch an animal movie like Bambi or The Rescuers?" I held up the two boxes before placing them in a separate stack. "Then there are ones based on children's books that I read when I was little or my mother read to me like Peter Pan or Alice and Wonderland." I placed those in another stack. "Or should we watch ones based on fairytales, Cinderella and Snow White, which are my personal favorites."

"I thought you hadn't seen any of these?" Tanya asked, emerging from behind the giant black box of doom.

"Snow White was the first movie I ever saw, so of course it holds a special place in my heart. I was changed in the 50's so I saw most of the ones that came out before then, but not all of them," I answered, browsing through the different titles.

"Ah, so you were changed this century, I'll add that to my stack of things I know about you," Tanya said gleefully, rushing around to grab a notebook.

"That's not fair," I gasped, indignantly, chasing after the other vampire.

Tanya dodged me by hopping over the couch, writing in her book the whole way. "Obsessed with Disney movies," she jotted down, "Likes fairytales, and changed in the 50's." She shut her notebook with a thud and stopped running. I didn't realize she had stopped because I slammed into her in my haste to catch her, knocking us both down on the ground. I landed on top of the older vampire, startling us both. My legs ended up on either side of Tanya's waist and my hands ended up on either side of her head.

I looked down into the golden eyes below me in shock. Something in me wanted to start purring at being so close to my mate, but I stifled down the urge. "The view is nice from down here," Tanya said, wiggling her eyebrows at me.

I rolled my eyes and jumped off of her quickly, going back to my stack of movies. "So what are we watching first?" I asked, trying to reign my instincts back in.

"We?" Tanya asked, propping herself up on her elbows, "Who is "we?"

"We, as in you and me," I answered, motioning between us.

"Who said I was watching these movies as well?"

"I did, now shut up and sit. If I have to deal with my food source walking and talking, then you have to watch movies of your food source walking and talking."

"Ah, beautiful and kind, a deadly combination," Tanya quipped, sitting down on the couch as I put the first movie in. "So what are we watching?"

"Snow White," I said, ignoring the fact that she just called me beautiful. Even though we have formed just a friendship between us, Tanya still flirted with me on occasion. "I decided that we should just watch them in the order that they were released," I finished, sitting back down on the couch.

The movie started and I fell back into the fantasy world of fairytales and magic. While these last few decades I've spent as a vampire wandering the world and being with my coven mates and my mother have been amazing and magical in there own way, they certainly weren't a fairy tale. Halfway through the movie, Tanya's arm, which had been lying behind me on the couch, crept around my shoulders. Part of me was tempted to leave it there and just enjoy being held, but I knew that that wasn't the type of relationship that Tanya and I had at the present moment in time. Never taking my eyes off the screen, I reached behind me and pried her hand off my shoulder and moved it around, placing it on her own knee. I patted it a few times before returning my own hands to my lap, eyes glued on the screen.

Tanya chuckled, but didn't try to snuggle with me again, which was slightly disappointing on the more instinctual, primal side of my being while my more, slightly in control regular self was relieved. I still wasn't sure how I felt about having an animal drinker for a mate, even though Tanya and I had started to become friends.

Fantasia was just started when Tanya decided to strike up a conversation. "So are you going to tell me yet what your gift is and why your eyes are such a strikingly beautiful mixture of blue and red?"

I didn't answer her for a long time. I just stared at the screen in front of me, contemplating her question. "Do you swear not to tell the Volturi?" I asked finally, "They would try to track me down and make me work for them, probably killing off my coven mates."

Tanya snorted, "Oh Bella, you have no fear about that. The Volturi and I don't exactly have the best relationship. I avoid seeing them whenever possible, and they avoid seeing me and my sisters."

I took a deep unneeded breath and sighed, "Alright, but this does not go in your little profile you're building on me."

"Agreed, now tell me," Tanya said eagerly, turning on the couch to face me.

"You know how a vampire's eye color displays how they feed right," I started, "Like how I knew you were an animal drinker because of your golden eyes or how human drinkers have red eyes?"

"Yes," Tanya nodded, "So the red part of your eyes shows that you drink human blood, but what is the blue from? And how come your eyes seem to glow sometimes?"

"It's part of my gift," I said after a few minutes, "I produce a type of shield. It's what keeps me from sparkling in the sunlight, and also makes my skin a little darker than normal vampires, helps me blend in better. It takes energy to keep it up, so that's what the blue is from, energy."

"Energy…" the strawberry blond murmured, "So you need to take in energy as well as blood?"

I nodded, "Yeah, when my eyes start to glow a little that means that I really mean to take in energy, like when a regular vampire's eyes are completely black. Usually when I need to take in energy, I just start to feel a little tired, and an ache in my bones."

"This is fascinating," the other vampire murmured, "So do you take energy from the people you feed on?"

"I do now, it's never enough though, so I have to take some from other people. Not enough to kill them, just enough to make them tired."

"You said you do now, so what did you do before?"

I hesitated momentarily, "Well, before I just took energy from my coven mates. Since vampires have unlimited energy, I can take everything that I need in one go."

"Why didn't you ever ask me?" Tanya looked offended. "I would've let you take energy from me."

"Um, you were a stranger that I didn't know, you could've been part of the Volturi for all I knew. My coven mates warned me not to let them find out about what I can do, they would misuse my gift or force me to bond with them."

"What all can your shield do?" Tanya asked, "Besides help you not sparkle of course."

"Well, from what I know about it, it makes me immune to most other gifts, but I haven't been exposed to many. When I stretch it out over others, it forms a skin tight barrier over them that also protects them from gifts and keeps them from sparkling."

Tanya gapped at me, "Wow, you're right. If the Volturi ever found out about you, they would hunt you down and force you to join." We sat in silence for a few minutes digesting that. "Do you need energy now?" She asked after a minute, noticing my slightly glowing eyes.

"Yeah, I need to take in energy more often than I do blood."

The older vampire scooted closer to me. "Take energy from me," Tanya said, "I want to know what it feels like."

I hesitated for a moment, before holding out my hand. "Take my hand," I said.

She grasped my hand and I could feel the familiar sensation of a wave washing through me into her, then back into me, restoring my energy stores. I saw Tanya tense for a moment before she relaxed like silly putty into the couch. When I released her hand, Tanya sighed. "That was better than an orgasm," she breathed, "I feel so relaxed."

I laughed nervously, "Can we just go back to the movie?"

Twenty movies and a day and a half later we finally finished watching all of the animated Disney movies that had come out. "Aah," I sighed in happiness, "That was a good marathon. What shall we watch next?"

"Are you serious?" Tanya asked, "You want to watch more movies?"

"Yes?" I supplied weakly, "It's been a while since I've been able to watch TV or movies, so I need to catch up on what's been happening in television. I've heard about things called 'I Love Lucy' and 'Star Trek.' Shall we see if we can find them?"

"Uh… I have to go, um, hunt, yes, that's what I have to do," she replied before running out of the house. I stared after her in confusion.

"What did I say?"

**Month 4**

"Hey Tanya," I started, looking over at the older vampire sitting on the couch, "I have an odd request…"

The strawberry blond looked at me from over her book and just stared at me. "You mean weirder than asking me to watch every animated Disney movie with you, or all of the I Love Lucy episodes, or every generation of Star Trek?"

"Those we all perfectly reasonable requests," I defended, "I was researching the new times, and boy are they weird."

"It would've been faster to read a history book," Tanya muttered, returning to her book.

I huffed and walked over to her, straddling her lap. Ever since I landed on top of her a few weeks ago while we were trying to set up the TV set, I figured out that it was the best way to attract her attention. It was hard being in such a position with her while my instincts were warring with me to just ravish her but my mind and heart were telling me that I wasn't ready yet, and I didn't know how Tanya felt about me either. I knew she was attracted to me though, which I used to my advantage, especially when getting her to agree to something.

"Tanya," I murmured into her ear. I felt the vampire beneath me freeze, and I grinned internally.

"Yes?" She gulped, doing her best to ignore me by keeping up the pretense that she was reading her book.

"I really want to ask you something," I said, shuffling closer to her body.

She sighed and put down the book. "What?"

If I were still human, I would've been blushing. "Well," I drawled, "I was wondering if I could watch you hunt sometime?"

"Thinking of a change in diet?" She joked, knowing that it was a touchy subject for me.

I made a disgusted face. "And give up eating criminals and nasty people? No way, I'm just curious as to how you hunt. Besides, your eyes are darkening, so it's time for you to hunt anyway."

Tanya sighed theatrically, "I guess so. I will agree to your demands if…"

"If?"

"If you give me a kiss," Tanya finished.

My mind instantly traveled to dangerous places as I eyed the older vampire's succulent lips. My instincts kept telling me to go ahead and take what was mine; what was being offered to me, but I kept balking. My mind jumped started again when I realized that Tanya was messing with me. A devious thought crossed my mind and I leaned closer to her.

Tanya's eyes widened as my face approached hers and they drifted shut when my lips were just a breath away from hers. I smirked and changed my course of direction, planting a loud kiss on Tanya's cheek. Her eyes flew open and I jumped off her laughing. "Come on Bambi muncher, let's go see how you hunt!" I squealed as I ran out of the house, the older vampire hot on my heels.

"That was mean," Tanya pouted at me.

I stuck my tongue out at her. "That's what you get for asking for something you don't deserve yet," I retorted.

"Ah, you said 'yet,' so my seduction techniques are working," she replied, wiggling her eyebrows at me.

I chose to ignore that comment instead of dignifying it with a response. I didn't really want Tanya to know that her seduction techniques were working and that the insistent push of the mating bond was wearing me down as well. "So what kind of animals do you even eat?" I asked, getting back to the topic at hand.

"Carnivores taste best, but herbivores aren't too bad either. I tend to eat more of the more populous animals to keep from eliminating endangered species," Tanya answered, sniffing the air.

"You care about endangered animals?" I asked in surprise. "You're nothing like the animal drinkers I've heard about, who target animals without care."

"I've lived for a long time, I realized how important some animals are for the environment, and I've already seen so many species go extinct in my lifetime," she replied, before taking off, tracking the scent of whatever she smelt.

I followed her at a distance, watching her as she stalked her prey. I saw that she had smelt a deer that was teetering around punch drunk, like it was sick or something. I watched her as she pounced on the animal and sunk her teeth into its neck, draining the animal dry. I was disgusted and turned on at the same time. Disgusted by the smell of the animal blood and watching her as she drank it, and turned on by the way that she moved as she followed the creature and elegantly pounced and feed, like a goddess in the night.

I shook the thoughts out of my head when Tanya disposed of the deer. "There was something wrong with her," she told me when she caught my questioning gaze, "I didn't want to take the chance that other animals would catch whatever she had"

"I didn't think there were deer in Australia," I said.

"They aren't native to the country, but they were introduced and now have stable populations. They're growing actually, getting rather ridiculous really."

"So instead of letting nature and humans keep track of their population, you've decided to take it upon yourself to keep the numbers down."

"Exactly," Tanya said superiorly.

I looked around casually while we walked back to the house when I noticed something up in the trees above us. I recognized it from a book I read recently about Australian folklore and glanced over at Tanya and realized she didn't see it. "So," I started, trying to seem nonchalant, "Have you seen any Drop Bears when you're out in the wilderness?"

Tanya laughed, "No, don't be silly, Drop Bears don't exist." She continued on ahead of me, while I eyed the mythical bear in the tree. I swear it winked at me before disappearing back into the darkness.

"Are you coming?" Tanya called back at me when she realized I wasn't next to her anymore.

"Yeah," I sped up to her.

"So why did you ask about Drop Bears anyway?"

I shrugged, "I just read a book about them in your library and wanted to know if they were real, that's all. I'm a big fan of mythology, and mythical creatures."

"Well, as far as I know, the only 'mythical' creatures that are real are vampires, of course, werewolves, and shape shifters," Tanya said, staring ahead so that she couldn't see me stifling back a laugh, "Of course, I've never met any shape shifters in person, but I heard there was this tribe of Native Americans in Washington that shift into large wolves. I think they're the only ones though."

"How do you know?"

"How do I know what?" Tanya looked at me confused.

"How do you know there aren't any more mythical creatures?"

"I've been a vampire for a long time. I think I would've seen them if they were real."

I hid a smile the whole way back to the house. "So how old are you anyway?" I asked when we were both back in the house seated on the couch.

"That is very impolite," Tanya returned, leaning back against the arm of the couch.

"I'm serious," I insisted, "You know how old I am."

"Vampire years yes, but I don't know how old you were when you were changed."

"25," I said, "I was 25, am 25, something like that."

"Ha, so I am older than you," Tanya exclaimed, "I was changed when I was 26."

"Yes, but how long have you been 26," I returned, rolling my eyes.

Tanya chuckled, "I was changed late 900's. Originally I'm from Moravia, modern day Eastern Europe."

"Wow, you are old," I whistled, "So who changed you?"

The older vampire instantly stiffened and I realized that it must be a touchy subject. "You don't have to answer right now," I hastened to say, "I just wanted to know."

"I will tell you," Tanya said after a few minutes, "But not yet, I'm not quite ready to talk about it yet, some things are too painful."

"That's understandable," I agreed, "Some things in my past are too difficult for me to talk about as well."

"Some things for us to work on in the future then," Tanya smiled.

I returned her smile and reached out to grab her hand, "Yes, some things for us to work on. I'm going to go upstairs and read for a while."

"You can use my room ya know, instead of one of the guest rooms. My room is more comfier," Tanya winked at me.

I leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear, "I just might," before disappearing upstairs. I situated myself in Tanya's room, relaxing on her bed, trying to avoid thinking about how many people she had 'conquered' on this bed. I new my potential mate was extremely sexually active, but I wasn't sure how I felt about that yet. I picked up the book about Australia I was reading before and turned to the section about Drop Bears. It didn't say anything about them disappearing or being invisible.

"So why didn't Tanya see it?" I murmured to myself, too quiet for the vampire downstairs to see. I remember reading in another mythology book that a lot of them rely on faith, or belief. If someone doesn't believe in the creatures, they can't see them. It was a bit farfetched, but it was the only explanation I had. My mom, Maria and I were more willing to believe in strange creatures so we were able to see them when we first started traveling. I won't discount the existence of any legendary creature until I have proof that they don't exist.

I stood up and walked over to the window and looked out into the darkness. I jumped when I noticed something staring at me from the trees. It was the Drop Bear I saw earlier. It was watching me from its perch. We scrutinized each other for a few minutes. The bear didn't look that much different from the average koala bear, only larger and more… sinister looking. It nodded its head at me before crawling further back in the trees, disappearing from view.

I don't know whether it was an omen or not, but I was thoroughly freaked out. "Guess I'm going to be watching my head now out in the forest," I muttered, before returning to the bed, curling up under a blanket to hide from the world.

**Month 5**

"So Bella," Tanya started, "I have a favor."

"You have a favor this time?" I asked, looking over at Tanya. I was sitting upside down on the couch, my head on the floor and my feet dangling over me. I was getting bored just sitting around, which is weird because I sat around for twenty years in the jungle, but I never ran out of things to do.

"Yes, and considering all of the things I let you talk me into, you owe me."

"Says who?"

"You made me watch Bonanza, and Gilligan's Island, I'm pretty sure you owe me after that," Tanya returned, staring at me.

I sighed and twisted around upright and stuck my tongue out at her. "Fine, what do you want?"

"It's been such a long time since I've been able to able to actually enjoy the beach, and I was wondering if you could stretched your shield over me so that we could go?" Tanya pouted at me, giving me these horribly large eyes that just screamed 'please do what I say or I'll cry.'

"Alright alright, just stop looking at me like that," I said, covering my eyes. When she stuck her bottom lip out like that I wanted to latch onto it with my teeth and suck it into my mouth.

"Yes! Now we have an excuse to go shopping for bathing suits. They've probably changed a lot since the last time you've had to wear one," Tanya said.

"Most likely, though I do like the beach. It's been a while since I've been able to enjoy one. Probably when I was in college maybe for spring break, my mother, she… She didn't really like the beach that much."

Tanya looked aghast, "You'll have to tell me more about your mother at some point."

"I will, but it makes me sad talking about her."

"Not being with her?" Tanya said sympathetically.

"You have no idea," I muttered, "So when are we going shopping, and where?"

"Well, Airlie Beach has some really nice beaches, but I kind of want to go to Sydney for shopping. It's an experience in itself."

"Isn't Sydney on the other side of the country?" I asked skeptically.

"It's not too far if we leave now. It'll only take a few hours to run down there," Tanya pleaded.

I stood up slowly, acting like it was a great burden to do so, "So I guess that means we're leaving."

"You can't go out like that," Tanya said, pointing at my furs that I was wearing. I had forgotten that I put them back on when I didn't need to go out and hunt. "And you need to put on shoes," the strawberry blond finished.

"Well then I'll stay here," I said, sitting back down.

"Bella!"

"What?!" I snapped, "I hate shoes, you can't seriously consider making me wear those things."

"Bella, if you want to go out in public, in stores, to go shopping, you have to wear shoes." Tanya rushed upstairs and came back down with a pair of sandals. "Here, just take them with you and put them on when we get there."

I glared at her and snatched the shoes out of her hand. "Fine, I'll go put on some normal clothes. Will shorts be fine or do I have to wear pants?"

"No, no shorts are fine," Tanya answered.

I ran upstairs and rifled through the sparse clothing I had managed to collect. I still cringed every time I pulled the fabric on because it felt extremely stifling to me, but I suffered through it. I grabbed a pair of short jean shorts and a plain blank tank top; it was the closest thing to my normal wardrobe that I could find. I hastily pulled the clothes on, and rushed downstairs, shoes in hand.

"I'm dressed you happy now?" I asked when I appeared in front of Tanya.

Tanya visibly swallowed when she took in my choice of attire and stuttered out and answer, "Ye-yeah, th-that's o-o-okay." I raised an eyebrow at her while I smirked internally. Tanya never stuttered, ever. It looks like seduction runs both ways in this relationship. For a while now, I had been testing the waters, to see if she felt anything for me, but all I've seemed to get is that Tanya is extremely attracted to me. I needed to know if there was any form of attachment with the attraction.

We started running down towards Sydney, Tanya slightly in the lead because I didn't know the way. A few hours of running later, we reached the large city. I stretched my shield out to cover Tanya and I felt it wrap around her as the familiar drain of energy left me. I dropped the shoes and slipped them on my feet, cringing as the straps wound around my toes. "Since I had to put clothes and shoes on, and you're already not sparkling, can we please go do some touristy things?" I begged, tugging lightly on Tanya's arm.

Tanya rolled her eyes and sighed, "Alright, but not many places, we do need to go shopping."

I squealed in excitement and started pulling her to the harbor. "Okay so I read in my book about the Sydney Opera House, the Harbor Bridge, something called The Rocks where Sydney was founded," I started babbling before Tanya put a finger to my lips.

"Shuuu," She said, "Calm down. We can go see those places, I promise, but I also think we should probably go to the book store at some point and get you some other things to read."

I smiled sheepishly, and ran a hand through my hair. "I'm just so excited, it's been a while since I've been able to go out and see things. My… my coven mates were usually with me and that made it more enjoyable." I deflated slightly thinking about my still missing mother and sister. Victoria and Maria were my family, and even though being with Tanya has been… interesting, I still missed them and wish they were here. Though if they were here, I would seriously consider Tanya's life and health to be at risk having to deal with an overprotective vampire mother and a former warlord.

"I know sweetie," Tanya said soothing, bringing me in for a brief but heart felt hug, "but it'll be alright. I'm sure you'll find them eventually, and, until then, I'll be your coven and we can go exploring. First touristy things, then shopping, and then the beach!"

I giggled, my mood instantly brightened, "Let's get to it then!"

We toured the harbor, looking at the different sights that Sydney had to offer, not able to take them all in, there were so many. Around midday, I grabbed some… lunch from an alley where I found a drunken homeless man and we continued touring around the city. I got Tanya to agree to push off the beach trip until tomorrow so that we could enjoy the city some more. When evening came, we made our way to one of Tanya's favorite stores.

"Do we have to?" I whined, staring at the front of the store. "I hate shopping."

"I've noticed, and yes, we have to, it's the only way we can get new bathing suits," Tanya answered, standing firm.

"I can always go naked?" I offered weakly.

Tanya's eyes blackened subtly and she took in a deep breath. "While that would be, delightfully interesting, we're going to a public beach, so some covering is required. Though we could explore you, naked on a beach in the future if you like," she suggested, a lustful expression on her face.

"You wish," I said, flipping my hair in her face and entering the store. I stopped and stared around me in shock at all of the clothes. "You've got to be kidding," I muttered, glancing around.

I felt Tanya come up behind me and place a hand on my lower back where my tank top didn't quite meet my shorts. "Come on dear, this way," she cooed in my ear, pushing me in one direction. I found myself in the swim section before I knew what happened, looking at a variety of swimwear.

At first, all I saw were one-piece swimsuits with no backs, which seemed to be what Tanya was looking at for her new suit. I picked one up and examined it but put it back down. They were different from when I was human, but I had gotten used to not wearing much clothing so it didn't bother me. The suits just weren't my style, if I even had a style. "So how does this look?" Tanya asked, holding one of the suits up in front of her.

I glanced over at her and froze. She was holding up a black one-piece swimsuit that strapped over her arms, but barely covered her ass and… other areas from what I could tell. "Um, well, I won't know until you try it on what it looks like," I replied slowly, trying not to stutter.

"Well, why don't you hurry up and pick one so that we can go to the fitting rooms," Tanya urged, motioning me to go back to my browsing.

I sighed and turned back to my browsing. My eye was caught by a rack a little down from where I was. I walked over to it and smiled. It was a rack full of bikinis of different styles and colors. I picked one up that was crimson red and a few pieces of fabric held together by strings. It was similar to what I was used to wearing, and it matched the red in my eyes and hair. "Got one!" I turned towards Tanya smiling.

"That?" She gulped, "Don't you want one that covers… well, more?"

I shrugged, "This is probably the closest thing to my normal attire. Plus, I hate wearing clothes, so this won't be so bad."

Tanya's eyes were nearly black now, and I could feel my eyes darkening as well. "Let's go back to the fitting rooms," she said huskily, eyeing me like I was a candy bar ready to be devoured.

"O-okay," I forced out, a tiny bit frightened by the expression on Tanya's face. She started pulling me toward the fitting room in the men's section, knowing that it was usually deserted. Tanya pushed me back in the furthest fitting room from the door, back in the corner and had me pinned against the wall.

"I have never wanted anyone as much as I want you," she whispered, "Ever since I saw you naked in a defensive crouch in my room, I've wanted you."

Tanya's dark eyes were mesmerizing and hypnotizing and I slowly found myself falling into them. The dark eyes came closer and closer and just when the older vampire's lips were about to meet my own, the words she said floated into my mind.

I placed my hands on her shoulders, stopping her and forcing her back. "Not like this Tanya," I murmured, my voice thick with unshed tears.

"But I am attracted to you," Tanya returned, "And I can tell you're attracted to me too. I'm a succubus you know, I could bring you pleasure that you've never experienced before."

"I don't doubt that," I returned, pushing myself off against the wall and pushing Tanya even further back, "But I don't want that. I don't want to be another notch for your bedpost. We would just have meaningless sex, and that's not what I want."

I dropped the bathing suit I had picked up and disappeared out of the fitting room, and out of the store. I left the city entirely, snapping my shield back to me since Tanya didn't need to be protected from the sunlight anymore. I was halfway back to the house before I slowed to a stop. I didn't really want to see Tanya at the moment since I was feeling so conflicted in my heart. I wanted Tanya to give me the pleasure that she promised, and to devour her in return, but I wanted feelings to go with it, not just sexual gratification.

I hid the sandals someplace I knew that Tanya could sniff them out and dropped to the desert ground, rolling in the dust to disguise my scent. When I was thoroughly caked in dirt and dust, I stood up and began running in the opposite direction, heading for the South Eastern part of the country.

**Month 7**

It's been over two month since I've seen Tanya. I caught trails of her looking for me all over the wilderness, but since she didn't have my shield over her, she could only look at night. I remained covered in dirt to keep my scent hidden. I hunted on poachers I found in the outback as well, draining their energy along with their blood.

I know I was being childish avoiding her, but I wasn't ready to face her yet. Tanya told me herself that she wanted me, but she didn't say anything about loving me. I didn't want to be just a casual fling like my mate was used to having with other vampires, I wanted a relationship with her. I was terrified of rejection though, which was why I was avoiding the problem completely.

I had found a secluded waterfall and lake out in the wilderness that formed from an underground spring. It was a beautiful area, with only the local wildlife to keep me company so I was at peace with my thoughts. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't realize that someone was sneaking up behind me when I was tackled into the water.

I surfaced, sputtering for unneeded air and I caught sight of wet strawberry blond hair and angry golden eyes. "Tanya," I gulped, shying away from her.

"Oh no you don't!" Tanya said, grabbing my arm and pulling me out of the water. "Where have you been?! I have been looking everywhere for you!"

"Sorry Tanya," I muttered, "I just couldn't face you yet."

"Why not? Is it because I offered to have sex with you and you turned me down flat?" Tanya accused, staring in my eyes. When I didn't answer, Tanya stood up and started pacing. "Why did you run away, why did you refuse? Did you not want to sleep with me? Did I get it wrong?"

"No!" I shouted standing up as well, "But I could tell that that was all that you wanted!"

The older vampire looked taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"It means that I want a relationship with you!" I yelled, stunning the other vampire.

"What?!"

I sighed, and shuffled around. "Look," I started, "I like you, a lot and I didn't want to just be an one night stand. I want something serious, but you clearly don't." I was about to turn and runaway but a hand reached out and grabbed my wrist.

"Wait, just wait, you can't spring that on a girl and then take off. You have to give me a while to process this," Tanya said, confusion evident in her voice.

"What's there to process?" I asked.

"Well I haven't had many people recently lining up to be in a relationship with me," Tanya said, "Most just want the night of pleasure that comes with bedding a succubus so forgive me if I'm in uncharted territory."

"What do you mean?" I asked, stunned.

"Well I've never actually been in a real relationship before," Tanya answered, "I was just a commoner in my human life, taken as a nobleman's mistress and sex slave, and in my vampire life, I'm a succubus; no one trusts me enough to not sleep around on them."

I stood in silence for a few minutes, just gapping at the older vampire. "So would you, be interested in a relationship I mean?" I asked.

"I don't know," Tanya replied honestly, "I mean, I don't know how I feel about you other than I'm extremely attracted to you. How would a relationship between us even work? I mean, you hate my diet, you've made that very clear."

"I've been doing my best to ignore it really," I said, stepping closer to the strawberry blond.

Tanya looked at me calculatingly. "You don't know me very well, and I don't know you very well yet either for that matter," she said finally after a few minutes.

"We can learn?" I offered, "I mean, that's what we've been doing all this time right?"

She sighed and ran her hand through her hair, "I guess. I'm new to this so I'm not sure I know how to deal with it."

"And you think I know?" I asked, "I haven't really dated since my human days and even then those relationships were very brief. More of convenience really, to relieve some tension around finals."

Tanya let out a chuckle, "I guess you know as much about relationships as I do." She stopped talking and turned around to face away from me. I was holding my breath; if I had still been human, my heart would've been pounding in my throat waiting for Tanya's answer. She turned around and scrutinized me for a moment. "We'll give it a try," she said slowly.

I gave her a bright smile and hugged her. "Thank you for understanding," I whispered into her ear.

"Of course I could just be agreeing to this to get into your pants," she said, squeezing my ass.

"Just shut-up," I said, rolling my eyes as I pulled away from her.

"You know you want me," Tanya said, leering at me.

"Tanya," I warned.

"Alright, alright," she acquiesced, "Are you coming back to the house? We never did get our day at the beach."

"I guess, I have been out here for a while," I said, looking down at my clothes. They were unrecognizable.

"Then my lady, let's go home," Tanya said, sticking her arm out.

I shook my head at her antics and took off, running towards… home.

**Month 8**

"I think I'm ready," Tanya said suddenly.

I looked over at her in confusion. "Ready for what?" I asked, setting down my book. The day I disappeared from Sydney into the wilderness, Tanya apparently decided she was going to cope with it by going on a shopping spree. She bought tons of books that she thought I might like and brought them back, piling them up around the place. I was slowly working my way through them.

We hadn't done much since we decided to give a relationship a try. Tanya still looked at me like I was juicy steak and she was a starving man, but she managed to rein it in a bit. We spent our days pretty much the same way we had before everything got out of hand.

"Ready to tell you about my life. My coven and why I don't particularly like the Volturi," Tanya replied, taking a deep breath. I waited patiently for her to continue. I realized that this was a big step for Tanya, other than agreeing to try a relationship.

"Like I told you before," she continued, staring absentmindedly into space, "I was born in Moravia in the 900's, I don't know the exact year. As peasants, we didn't really keep up with that type of thing. I just knew every time the seasons rolled through, that I was a year older. We were poor and my father couldn't afford a dowry to marry me to one of the tradesmen in the villages. My beauty was apparently legendary so my father sold me to a nobleman from a distant town in order to feed himself, my mother and the rest of my siblings. It didn't matter though as a few months after I left, a sickness spread through the village, wiping my entire family out." Venom tears welled up in my eyes hearing Tanya's story. I searched her face to see if I could tell what she was thinking or feeling, but Tanya's face remained blank. Something told me that that was the only way she would be able to get through her story.

Tanya shook herself out of her memories and started back up with her story again. "Anyway, I lived in the Nobleman's manor as his mistress since I was 16 years old. I hated being there, being looked at like I was a whore by the servants and his wife. My greatest fear however was to be impregnated with his bastards, churning them out for the rest of my life while his wife remained barren. It was disgusting to me, so I had one of the maidservants mix up a tonic that would prevent me from getting pregnant."

"It sounds horrible," I forced out, choking back the tears in my eyes that would never fall.

The older vampire gave me a small smile, "Thank you, I don't think anyone has ever expressed sympathy for me, anyone that hasn't lived through that time period anyway."

I returned her smile. "How did you become a vampire?" I asked, "Who changed you?"

"Her name was Sasha," Tanya said, "Biologically she was my great aunt. She came for me when another sickness spread through the land. She became like a mother to me after I was changed. Mother changed two others in the next couple hundred years after she changed me and they became my sisters, we became a family."

A feeling of dread crept into my stomach as she referred to her mother in past tense. "What happened?" I croaked, trying to get in control of my voice.

A few minutes passed before Tanya was ready to continue the story. "Unlike myself and my sisters, my mother had always wanted a child of her own, so she took one and changed him."

I gasped. "She created an immortal child?" I hissed out, appalled at the thought.

"So you know about immortal children?" Tanya asked.

"Yes, my, my extended coven taught me all about vampires. What my maker didn't know, they taught us. They said that the two things we were never to do is to reveal ourselves to humans unless under special circumstances, and never ever change child, creating an immortal child."

Tanya nodded, "Whoever taught you is right. Immortal children are basically animals; too young to understand self-control and restraint, things vampires need to keep from wiping out entire populations of humans. Anyway, Sasha changed a little boy, and that drew the Volturi's wrath on her. They ripped her and the little boy apart right in front of us, and then tried to kill me and my sisters as well. The Kings couldn't prove that we knew anything about what Sasha had done so they let us go. They tend to avoid inviting us to Volterra though, and we like to stay off their radar."

"Tell me more about your coven," I said, trying to lighten the mood.

The other vampire smiled, "Well first there are my sisters, Irina, who was changed when she was 23 and Kate, who was changed when she was 20. We're all succubae, and are pretty infamous in the vampire community for our sexual exploits. The other two members joined not that long ago. Eleazar is a former Volturi guard, but he was allowed to leave when he met his mate Carmen. The Kings call him for assistance every now and then, but we never go."

"You have a former guard member living with you?" I cried, standing up, "And you think that he won't tell his 'masters' about me?"

"No one in my coven know about you, so you're still safe," Tanya said, trying to calm me down.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Tanya not telling her coven, her family about me so I stored it away for future analysis. "So you have a pretty large coven," I said instead, "How does that work?"

"Oh, well the animal blood reins in our territorial instincts. Vampires as you know can only really form covens as large as two or three without getting moody," Tanya answered. I looked at her strangely but she didn't seem to notice. "My coven and another animal drinking coven are the largest outside of the Volturi." I stashed _that_ piece of information away for later as well. If Tanya's coven wasn't the one that nearly wiped out Kida's tribe, then maybe it was this other coven; maybe it was started by the same man that Kachiri told me about.

"So how did you start drinking animal blood?" I asked.

"After our mother was killed, my sisters and I descended into a frenzy, a rage. We slept with men and women alike, draining them completely." I nodded in understanding. From what it sounds, it was the same thing that happened to Maria when she thought her mate had been killed, prompting her to enter the Southern Vampire Wars. "Eventually we got tired of living that way, and swore off human blood, drinking only animal blood. When Eleazar and Carmen joined us, they started the diet as well."

"Ever think about switching back?" I asked.

"Not anytime soon, but if I do I'll let you know," Tanya said, smirking.

I shrugged before standing up, "I'm gonna go hunting. I found some great spots for poachers when I was out there, so I thought I would visit that area again to get a snack."

"Wait what about your story, your coven," Tanya exclaimed standing up.

I giggled, "I never said I would be telling you about them today now did I?"

Tanya pouted at me. "Do you need energy?" She asked, extending her hand. I nodded and grasped her hand with mine, feeling a wave rush through me. I don't know if it was the fact that she was my mate, but Tanya's energy felt different, like a crisp blast of fresh air on a mountaintop. It was refreshing and invigorating all at the same time. She sighed when I released her hand, melting back into the leather. "That is still almost as good as sex," she sighed, lolling her head back against the arm of the couch.

I laughed and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. "I'll be back soon," I whispered, "After I free some poor animals from some icky poachers."

"Mhm, okay," I heard her sigh, and I laughed as I headed out of the door.

**Month 9**

"Finally, a day at the beach!" Tanya said, laying out her towel.

I rolled my eyes as I set down my bad, which was really just for show, and spread out my own towel. I took out a bottle of sunscreen that was being used as part of the human act and tossed it at Tanya. "Will you put lotion on me sweetie?" I asked in my best flirtatious, taking my t-shirt and shorts off to reveal my dark red bikini.

Tanya grinned at me and sashayed over to me, pulling off her own clothes to reveal her not very modest black one-piece. "Mhm, I think I can do that baby," she murmured, eyeing me up and down. Our relationship really started to progress after the talk we had about Tanya's past. It seemed that after that, she really started to open up and be more affectionate with me. I still haven't let her kiss me yet though. I wanted our first kiss to be special. My first kiss as a human was a result of a dare, and I imagine her first kiss was unspectacular as well. I wanted her to be the last person she kissed, so I wanted it to be everything a first kiss should be.

While romance novels were never my favorites, especial those tragic stories like Wuthering Heights or Romeo and Juliet, I was a fan of a good old-fashioned love story, with a happy ending of course and everything that came with it. I knew it was unrealistic, but it was still my dream. I giggled and slapped her softly as she lightly nipped at my neck, urging me down on my towel underneath the umbrella she had set up early. "No funny business," I said, as she poured a fair amount on her hands.

She rubbed her hands together and then placed them on my stomach, rubbing the useless sun block on my marble skin. "We're vampires baby," Tanya whispered, subtly groping me in certain areas, "I could have you coming here in the sand in a matter of seconds and no one would be the wiser."

"Don't even think about it," I stated sternly when I felt her fingers start to creep places that they really shouldn't go yet, not out in public anyway.

"You're no fun," Tanya whined as she finished rubbing the icky stuff on my legs. I flipped over and propped myself up on my elbows.

I eyed her over my shoulder as she started rubbing the backs of my legs. "You know I can't tell if I like you better with your skin sparkling or faking a human appearance under my shield," I commented casually.

"Maybe you just like me under you," she returned, "I wouldn't mind. I've been wanting to be under you, on top of you, behind you for a while now."

I turned my head quickly and took a deep breath, digging my fingers into my skin to keep my arousal from flooding down and giving away how much I want all of what she said. It was getting harder to not just jump her and claim her, but I wanted Tanya to acknowledge that we were mates first. She hasn't said anything about it though, which worried me a little. Tanya moved her fingers up my back, sticky with the remnants of the sunscreen. They ghosted over the side of my rib cage and I giggled as she hit an old ticklish spot leftover from my human years.

I quickly shooed her off me and took the bottle from her before she could get any ideas. "Things were just getting good," she whined as I pushed her over to her own towel.

"You're incorrigible," I muttered, shaking my head. She leaned back on the towel, arms behind her head. I hovered over her legs, gliding my hands over them just to give the illusion that we were wearing sun block. "Alright now turn over," I said when I finished.

Tanya sighed like I asked her to pick up one of the pyramids and flipped over slowly. I gulped when I saw the smooth expanse of her back revealed. I couldn't decided whether to relish touching her or getting it over as soon as possible. My hands danced over the expanse of her back, eliciting a light purr from the vampire underneath me. That sound caused my insides to clench deliciously and I knew I had to get this over with as soon as possible before we ended up arrested for indecent exposure.

"Okay that's enough of that," I said jumping back, "Let's hit the water." I ran at a human pace into the spray, giggling at the surf hit my legs. "Tanya come on!" I yelled back at the strawberry blonde before I dove under the water. I popped right back up so that it wouldn't seem suspicious and saw Tanya running towards me. We played in the water for most of the morning and into the afternoon. Eventually we left the water, and laid out on our towels to dry off and to pretend we were sunbathing.

When the sun started to sink down towards the horizon, we decided to take a walk along the beach. I gave Tanya a wide smile when she reached over to grab my hand, lacing our fingers together. "Today was fun," I said, leaning my head on Tanya's shoulder. In this instance, I'm glad that Tanya was just a little bit taller than myself.

"Yeah, your shield comes in handy," Tanya agreed, "We wouldn't have been able to come out today if you didn't have that."

"It has proved advantageous a few times," I replied. I was about to say something else when I caught sight of two idiot muscle heads eyeing us from just down the beach. I didn't appreciate the way they were looking at my mate so I glared at them. Humans have a natural fear of vampires, a sense of self-preservation that made them keep their distance. Apparently theirs kicked into overdrive because when they saw my glare, they turned tail and ran.

I smirked in satisfaction and turned my head to see Tanya smirking at me. "What?" I asked innocently.

"Did you enjoy that?" She asked.

"I'm not sure what you talking about," I replied, feigning ignorance.

"Right," Tanya drawled out spinning me around, "Don't think I didn't notice you glaring at those two muscle heads that just ran off like they saw a demon."

"They were ogling," I defended, "I don't appreciate oglers."

"Mhm, you never seem to mind when I ogle," Tanya murmured, leaning closer to me.

"I wasn't the one…" I started slowly but stopped trying to form sentences when Tanya's lips came within a hair's distance from my own. I sucked in a quick unneeded breath of air before closing the distance, meeting her lips with mine for the first time.

It was everything I dreamed my first kiss with my mate would be, soft and tender with a slowly building and burning passion. My lips opened slightly as the kiss deepened, my hands tangling in Tanya's strawberry blonde locks. I felt Tanya's hands slide up from my rib cage to cup my face, pulling me in deeper to her if that were possible.

Tanya's tongue darted out of her mouth, licking at my bottom lip, teasing her way inside mine. Those who've described kissing as a dance severally underestimate the passion sparked with the contact. The feeling of her tongue gliding against mine, probing in my mouth and my tongue probing in hers in return transcended dance, transcended tentative meetings of hands as Shakespeare once described. It was a war, both sides wanting to dominate the other, attacking, retreating, forwarding, withdrawing. In dance, one followed and the other lead, but how could either of us follow or lead in something as all consuming as this?

We slowed to the gradual brushing of lips, tentative caresses of newborn lovers. When we finally broke apart, I was panting for unneeded air. My eyes slowly drifted open, and I met Tanya's coal black eyes with my own and smiled.

**Month 10**

"Bella baby?" Tanya murmured from my lap.

"Mhm?" I answered, not turning my attention from my book, my fingers brushing through her silky hair as her head nuzzled comfortably in my lap.

"Are you ever going to tell me about your family, your human life?" She asked, a little whine in her voice.

I set my book down and looked into the golden eyes beneath me. "Do you really want to know?" I asked, sinking both of my hands into her hair.

"Yes," she said, leaning up to place a soft kiss on my lips.

I sighed. "Alright alright," I said, pushing her off my lap. "I was born in 1931," I started, thinking I better start at the beginning, "I don't remember much of my early life, but what I know is what was told to me. Originally I'm from New York and I was born to an unwed teenager. I was a little over 2 years old when she died. The very night that she died, I was abandoned in a forest by my grandparents, left out in the cold to die." I heard Tanya gasp and felt her grasp my hand, squeezing it in comfort. "I didn't, obviously, but what they did was probably the best thing to happen to me."

"What happened?" She asked.

"I met my mother that night," I said smiling, thinking of my red-haired, wild, overprotective mother. "She found me out there in the woods and took me in, and she was a vampire."

"What?!" Tanya exclaimed, "You were raised by a vampire? Was- Is- She a human drinker?"

I nodded, "Yes she's still a human drinker. She raised me the best that she could. We never really had much, since she didn't have much to begin with, but I always had food and everything that I needed. I love her very much. She helped me through the hardest parts of growing up, puberty, broken hearts and-" I stopped for a minute, "And finding out that I couldn't have children…" I trailed off for a few minutes, staring into space, remembering the good and bad of my human life. I shook myself out of my thoughts when I felt Tanya squeeze my hand again. "We agreed that she would change me when I turned 25, the same age she was when she was bitten."

"What's her name?" Tanya whispered, brushing my hair with her fingers.

"Victoria," I answered, "Her name is Victoria. After I was changed, we traveled South and met the third in our little family, Maria."

At this, Tanya literally jumped. "Maria? Like the Warlord Maria?"

"Ex-Warlord," I corrected, "The Southern Wars have long been over. Anyway, she wasn't part of our coven yet, just a dear friend that allowed us to stay with her for a few years. She told us of a coven that lived in the rainforest that could help me with my gift, so my mother and I traveled down there and met the rest of our extended coven."

"The Amazonians," Tanya breathed, obviously knowing whom I was talking about, "You're part of the Amazonian coven? They're some of the oldest vampires in the world, very mysterious but well respected."

I nodded, "They taught us what we didn't know about vampires and helped me hone my gift. After 20 years of staying with them, Maria came to find us and we left on a world tour. That was probably a little over 2 years ago, and then you know how we were separated."

"Seems like you've had a whirlwind vampiric existence so far," Tanya said, smirking.

"You could say that. Unlike other vampires though, I didn't have much to give up when I was changed. I couldn't have kids, my only family was my vampire mother and I didn't really have any human friends that I was particularly attached to. I was really focused on my studies when I was in school and we moved around a lot. Sure I made friends, but they only lasted for about 2 years then we packed up and moved again," I said, "It got old, but I understood why we had to do that."

"Yeah, but at least you knew what was coming," Tanya murmured, leaning in to kiss me. When we broke apart, a disturbed look was present on Tanya's face. "Wait, does this mean that I have to contend with the fiercest Southern Warlord, some of the oldest vampires in the world, and a mother if ever I upset you?"

"Seems like it," I replied, a mischievous expression on my face.

"Oh dear…"

**Month 12**

"Bella," Tanya said, creeping up behind me and slipping her hands around my waist.

"What?" I said, sounding annoyed but smiling anyway.

"I have a surprise for you," she said, setting her head on my shoulder, kissing up my neck.

I tilted my head to allow her more room and moaned. "Does this have anything to do with what you were working on upstairs for so long?" I asked.

"Just come with me and find out," Tanya whispered, grasping my hand and pulling me upstairs. I noticed we were heading in the direction of her bedroom and I raised an eyebrow at Tanya. She opened the door and motioned me inside first and I gasped.

The lights in the room were out, but candles sitting on various flat surfaces around the room illuminated everything. Rose petals of a variety of colors littered the bed and a bottle of red wine sat on the nightstand with two glasses. "Wine?" Tanya asked, pouring the red liquid into the two glasses.

"I didn't think vampires could drink wine," I said, accepting the glass.

Tanya shrugged, "Just something I found out during my more rebellious period. Red wine mimics blood so much our body accepts it and processes it like blood. Enough of it in our system, we could probably start feeling the buzz of alcohol, but not enough to get drunk." She handed me one of the glasses and took a sip out of her own.

I took a sip of the wine in the glass and realized that it did taste as I remembered, a mixture of sweet and sour flavor. I heard music flicker on in the room and I glanced over at Tanya and saw her put down the remote for her sound system. "Dance with me," Tanya said, pulling me in closer to her.

"If I didn't know any better," I started, lacing my hands around her neck, "I would say you're trying to seduce me."

"Really?" Tanya mused as we swayed to the music, "Is it working?"

"Maybe…" I smiled against her neck. I reached back with one hand and grabbed my glass, taking another gulp of the red liquid. My eyes locked on hers over the rim of the glass and my breath caught in my chest. Her eyes were the blackest I had ever seen them and I felt my own eyes respond in kind. The last remaining shreds of sense that I had been holding onto around Tanya faded as my instincts finally took over. I surged forward, claiming her lips for my own, forcing her down onto the bed behind us. Straddling her lap once she was on the bed, I moved my lips down her neck, nibbling as I went. "It would seem your seduction techniques worked," I purred into her ear, feeling her shudder beneath me. "Now why don't you keep all of those promises you made to me a while ago."

I felt her beast rise up within her and suddenly I was on my back further up the bed with Tanya hovering over me, her hair acting as a current around us. "I always keep those kinds of promises," Tanya growled.

I arched up to meet her skin with my own as our clothes practically melted off of our bodies. My arousal felt as a fire between my legs and I could feel Tanya radiating a similar heat. We twisted and turned in the sheets in an act of directed movements, improvisation and pure passion. The headboard banged against the wall; the box spring beneath us groaned with our movement before finally giving out and giving way to our ecstasy.

I was beneath her, above her, behind her and beside her, nothing could stop our desire, quench our lust. The sheets tangled around our bodies, soaked with the essence of our passion, ripped and torn in various areas, surrendering to our vampire strength.

We came to an explosive stop when an all-consuming climax ripped through us. I screamed out in pleasure and collapsed on top of Tanya, hair stuck to my back from making love. "I love you Tanya," I whispered when I caught my breath, her hand running through my stiff hair.

Her hand stilled for a brief minute before starting again. She didn't say a word, but I didn't care. I was in a high at being this close to my mate. All too soon, I felt a familiar lethargy in my bones and a fire tickling my throat. I groaned and sat up, releasing my beautiful mate. "I have to go hunt," I moaned, looking around for some clothes to wear, "And I need energy."

"Poacher hunting again?" Tanya teased.

I returned her smile, "Probably, but I'll have to travel to a city to get enough energy. You wore me out." I pulled on a tank top and shorts, and walked over to where Tanya was lying on the bed. Kissing her softly on the lips, I whispered, "I'll be back soon."

"Bye," Tanya said, slipping a finger along the neckline of my tank top.

I traveled to my favorite spot to pick off a few poachers to quench my thirst, then headed to the closest large city to get the energy I needed. I checked a pocket calendar when I was filching energy from people. It had been over a year since I'd last seen my mother and Maria, and nearly a week since Tanya and I started to make love. "No wonder I was so drained," I murmured, putting the calendar back where I found it.

I practically skipped my way back to the house. I was so happy to finally have my mate. "Tanya," I yelled when I entered the house, "I'm back." She didn't reply, so I ran upstairs to her bedroom. "Tanya?" I asked, looking around the room. It was empty. "Maybe she went out to hunt as well?"

I went back downstairs and sat on the couch, waiting for hours. I was about to go out looking for her, to make sure she wasn't hurt, when I caught sight of a note for me on the dining room table. I picked it up with shaking hands, truly afraid of what it would say.

_Bella,_

_ I tried Bella, I really did, but I can't do relationships right now, not while I'm still waiting for my mate to come. I've never really had a relationship before and when you told me you loved me, well, I got scared. _

_ I'm so attracted to you, and I really wanted to satisfy that attraction so that's why I agreed to try a relationship. It was fun at first, doing all the cute and romantic things that relationships call for, but I realized that I couldn't handle the emotions that come with them_

_ You might say that it's cruel of me to end things this way, but I couldn't face you. I care for you Bella, maybe not as much as I care for my sisters, or my future mate, whoever he is, but I do care for you. Maybe one day, if we ever meet back up again, we can meet as friends._

_ I hope you find your coven mates soon. I know you weren't telling the truth about who they were. Maria would never abandon the Wars, and from what I know about the Amazonians, they wouldn't let anyone into their coven. And a human drinking vampire couldn't raise a child, too much of a temptation. I still care for you, even though you lied to me, and I wish you the best._

_Tanya_

I stared at the paper in belief. "I should've known better," I hissed, crumpling the paper in my hand, "I should've known what they were like and that she was just like them." A red haze descended over my eyes, and a fierce, primal scream burst from my throat as I felt wood and tile break in my hands…

* * *

**And there we go, that's what happened. It needed to happen, both of them need to grow and be separated. It's too early for them to be together right now, Bella still has some traveling to do, and do you honestly think that if Tanya knew that Bella was her mate, she would let her go? I don't think so, and besides, Tanya has to kick her animal blood habit and it's best if she does that when she realizes what it has cost her so far.**

**And if some of you haven't read my other stories, I don't do lemons, ever, it's not my thing. Just picture whatever you want in your head. Oh, and also, I'm looking for appropriate visuals for Bella and Tanya. I dislike Kristen Stewart personally, and the lovely woman who played Tanya in the movies was nice, she doesn't fit. Suggestions, anyone?**

**Until next time, oh and please don't flame me! Don't yell at me!**


	10. Chapter 9

**A/N: I was holding this chapter hostage until Mana Tatsumiya updated her story Arching Light. Since she has, she requested that I post this, hopefully she'll still feel encouraged to post the next chapter of it tomorrow. Sigh, I'm exhausted, but I'll try to keep everything to a minimum.**

**I know everyone is looking forward to Bella and Rosalie meeting, and now you guys have me terrified of writing it, but it will come eventually and most everything you guys wish to happen with Bella, Rosalie Victoria and Tanya will happen... Well, as far as I can tell, the characters aren't talking much since Bella's heartbroken and Vic and Maria are seething angry with me right now. **

**Alright, what's going on in this chapter, well, I based the reactions on what my mom did when I went through my first heartbreak and multiplied it by alot and threw in some vampire mommy coven threats. Best thing for heartbreak though is distraction.**

**Also, I was going to ask you guys this last chapter, but I spaced out and forgot, What is your favorite animated Disney movie if you have one, or just favorite animated movie in general? My favorite animated Disney movie is The Black Cauldron, and my favorite one in general is probably Scamper the Penguin. It's on youtube if you haven't watched it. Too cute!**

**Anyway, review please**

**Chapter 9**

Victoria and Maria stared at Bella in disbelief while the brunette vampire simply stared at the wreckage around her. "I'm going to kill her," Victoria hissed, her eyes dangerously black. She turned and started to walk in the general direction of Alaska, ready to swim the entire Pacific ocean to get there.

"Woah now," Maria said hastily, stepping in front of the enraged vampire, "I'm with you, I want to kill her too, but we can't."

"Why not?" Victoria snapped, "She deserves to die for what she did to my daughter. People as careless and cruel as that don't deserve to live."

Maria put her hands up. Even though she was once, a probably still is, a feared Southern Warlord, she knew that messing with a mother was one of the worst things anyone could do. "I don't disagree with you. I'd help you do it to, but it seems to me that you're forgetting one major problem," the Hispanic vampire said.

"What?"

"She's your daughters mate, her soul mate," she murmured quietly. Maria watched as Victoria deflated and turned back to Bella, who was still staring around her like an empty shell.

The red head took her daughter in her arms and the younger vampire broke down sobbing, crying tears that would never fall. "Ssshhh Bella, ssshhh," Victoria murmured, stroking her daughter's hair. All she wanted to do with her life was protect Bella, but how could she protect her child from a broken heart caused by her own soulmate?

Maria looked on sadly as her coven sister broke down, completely torn by what had happened. "I should've know better," Bella cried out, her voice muffled by her mother's shoulder, "I shouldn't have let it get this far. I should've know that she didn't feel the pull early on, but still, I convinced myself that maybe she felt it but didn't want to act on anything with someone she didn't know."

"Maybe we should kill her," Maria said, changing her mind on her stance, "Or better yet, maybe we should get our extended coven together and go teach her and her coven of pussies a lesson."

"Maria," Victoria hissed when Bella's sobs got louder, "You're not helping…"

Bella froze and pulled back from her mother. "That's another thing," Bella said, her eyes clearing of venom tears, "Why did she think I was lying? How dare she assume to know anything about my life or the people I call family?" She stood up and started trashing more of the remains of the house, leaving gaping claw marks in the wood.

"Should we stop her?" Maria asked watching as Bella stomped her way through what used to be a roof, ripping apart everything along her way.

"No, I think this is good for her," Victoria responded, "It'll be good to work out her frustrations…" Her voice trailed off when she heard the sound of metal and plastic ripping apart. They turned and saw a hulking remanent of wires and tubes in Bella's hands as she twisted and ripped the insides out. "I think that was a TV she just ripped apart…"

The two vampires watched as third member of their coven raged through the remains of the house, destroying and ripping apart anything still whole. It would seem that the TV, a bed and various books and movies received the majority of her ire. Maria spotted Bella's lion skin cloths and leathers amongst the debris, and grabbed them before Hurricane Bella could come charging through again.

Bella stopped as she shattered the last standing wall, breathing heavily in her anger. She looked around her at the carnage she caused and felt venom tears welling in her eyes again. "I don't know what to do Mom…" Bella murmured, looking back at the other two blankly, "My mate rejected me, didn't want me."

"She doesn't deserve you," Victoria corrected, "Tanya was a fool to pass on you; a fool to believe that because she drinks animal blood that she's superior to other vampires. She's making assumptions based on wrong information. Maybe in the future things will be different, of course, she'll have to get through me to get to you."

"And me too, don't forget that," Maria said coming up to stand next to Bella, "We have your back, and if one day, you decided you want to mess up her face or destroy another one of her houses, we'll help you."

Bella coughed out a laugh that was strangled by a sob. "Thanks Maria," she whispered, sniffling a little.

"Hey, you listen to me," Victoria said, tilting Bella's head towards her own, "She doesn't deserve you. Given time, this won't make you sad anymore."

The brunette nodded and gave a half-hearted smile, "I don't know if I'll ever feel like myself again. I mean, she filled a part of me that I didn't realize was missing."

Victoria embraced her child once more. "I can't say I know what you're going through," she whispered into the brunette's hair, "But you will feel better, given time."

"Okay," Bella whispered, blinking back the venom in her eyes. She looked around, grimacing at the wreckage. "Can we leave? I don't really want to stay here anymore."

"Sure, where do you want to go?" Victoria asked.

The younger vampire snorted, "Alaska, to punch Tanya in the face."

"Okay, let's go. Alaska is what, Northwest of here?" The redhead replied, turning around to get her bearings.

"No," the brunette yelled, grabbing a hold of her mother before she could take off. "No," she repeated, "Let's just, I don't know, continue with our world tour. Didn't Kachiri said something about something interesting in the Northern Soviet Union?"

Maria snorted, "What could be interesting up there other than snow?"

"Who knows, but we can stop and see Ilayda on the way. Judging by where we were, I guess we were in the Philippines so we can stop on the way up," Victoria said.

"Who's Ilayda?" Bella asked, feigning interest. She was trying to be really interested, but it was hard with a gaping hole in her chest.

"Come on," Victoria replied, "We'll tell you all about it on the way."

* * *

"Vic, Maria, you're back!" Ilayda cried running up to them. The banished mermaid noticed a third person there with her friends and determined that it must be the one they set out looking for. "You are Bella?" She asked, approaching the brunette slowly.

The vampire stared at the mermaid in amazement and nodded her head. "You must be Ilayda, I'm happy to meet you. Vic has told me how you helped rescue poor Maria from a lifetime of blood and sex," Bella said, sending a teasing glance towards her Hispanic sister.

Ilayda nodded, smiling towards her first friend. She turned her gaze back towards her new friend and studied her for a moment. "You've had your heart broken haven't you?" Ilayda asked softly.

The three vampires stared at her in shock. "How do you know?" She whispered, looking painfully down at the ground.

"A mermaid can recognize these things," she murmured, placing her finger under Bella's chin and lifting her head, "You're eyes. They're empty; they speak of heartbreak."

"A mermaid thing?" Victoria asked.

Ilayda nodded, "It is part of our history, a gift I guess, to recognize heartbreak. Long ago, our ancestors the Sirens would sing to draw men to their island to breed and feed, but their song could only affect those with broken hearts. As the Sirens evolved into mermaids, the ability stayed and evolved along with us. Now we can't attract those with broken hearts, but we can recognize it for what it is." The mermaid placed a comforting hand on the brunette's arm, "It is the sign of a strong heart, those who survive it are the strongest of us all."

Bella felt venom tears pool in her eyes and she embraced the mermaid. "Thanks Ilayda," she said, her voice thick with emotion.

The mermaid smiled and broke the embrace, looking at the other two as well. "Did you guys just stop in for a visit or are you staying a while?"

"No we just stopped in to visit, we should be getting back to the mainland. We have more places to visit," Victoria answered, "Are your fellow mermaids busy?"

"Yeah they're all occupied elsewhere. It's the full moon tonight, so they're out enjoying it," Ilayda answered, "The water on the Northern side of the island is safe."

"Gracias mi Amiga," Maria thanked her friend.

The three vampires were about to depart when Ilayda called out. "Wait, before I forget," she called, "I think I'm going to leave this island. There are other mermaid kingdoms in the world that I might give a try. If ever you guys find yourselves near the ocean on a more permanent basis, just drop in a note in a bottle and I'll find you."

"A note in a bottle? That really works?" Bella asked.

"How else do you contact a mermaid," Ilayda returned, jumping in the water along with the vampires. They bid the mermaid goodbye as she started swimming east and they continued north to get to the Asian continent.

* * *

"Mom, I just want some time alone, that's all," Bella said, pleading with her mother. It'd been nearly three months since they'd left Australia and the brunette had her heartbroken. Victoria and Maria hadn't left her alone at all in the time since, and while she loves her family dearly, the young vampire desperately wanted time to herself.

"If you're sure?" Victoria replied hesitantly. She had been trying to make up for not being there for Bella when her daughter needed her the most, but smothering apparently wasn't working.

"Yes," the brunette said, "Go hunt or something, look around. I'll be fine."

Victoria glanced at their Hispanic coven mate who nodded and started heading out. Bella sighed in relief, looking out around her. They were somewhere in central Asia, the exact country unknown to them since none of them were very good at geography.

They had traveled back and forth in Asia, running from one culture to another. Bella was trying to out run heartbreak, while Vic and Maria were simply trying to keep her mind off of what happened. Experiencing new cultures and finding mythical creatures was fun, but it only held the pain at bay.

When they had been traipsing around the Himalayan mountain range, Maria accidentally stumbled into a Yeti cave halfway up Mt. Everest. Needless to say, it was a quick trip up the tallest mountain in the world as they tried to escape an angry mother yeti. Since they left Australia, it's been one thing after another and Bella hadn't really had a chance to mourn for what she lost.

Bella stared out at the barren plain in front of her, heart weeping for the loss of her mate. She sat on the ground, and folded her knees into her chest. Folding her arms on top of her knees, Bella buried her face in her arms, sobbing. After a while, the brunette felt a heat on her cold arms and a soothing song wrapped around her form. Bella lifted her head hesitantly after the song subsided and her sobs ceased, and froze in alarm at the sight in front of her.

A bird about 2ft in length, standing a little more than a foot off the ground, sat in front of her. The bird's body was a beautiful mixture of white and blue while its wing, tail and the plume's on its head were a beautiful crimson and yellow. Bella and the bird eyed each other for a few minutes before the bird took a few hesitant steps closer. _Why are you crying?_ A voice whispered in Bella's head.

The vampire looked around startled then stared back at the bird. "Was that you?" She asked.

_Yes,_ the voice said again, _what's wrong?_

"What are you?"

The bird huffed, _You don't know much do you child? I am a phoenix, and you are a vampire. Now I ask you again, why are you crying?_

Bella blinked, "Sorry, um, I've just never talked to a bird before…" She trailed off briefly, looking down at her crossed arms. "My mate abandoned me," Bella explained, nuzzling back into her arms, "I told her I loved her, gave her everything that I had, and she just threw it back at me."

_I am sorry young one,_ the phoenix murmured, nudging the brunette's arm with its beak. _No one should have to go through such heartbreak._

"Why do you care?" Bella asked, looking up at the bird.

A peculiar expression crossed the phoenix's face. _I'm not sure,_ its voice resounded in her head, _I was just flying overhead and I felt your pain. I felt like I need to come down here and be with you._

"Has anything like this happened before?"

_Not to me…_ The bird replied vaguely.

"But you know some that it has happened before?" Bella encouraged.

The phoenix looked down sadly, _It has happened to some of my kind before. They formed Familiar bonds with people. These bonds gave my kind the ability to communicate, like I'm doing with you, and to feel emotions._ _While these are good things, the bond also had negative effects. When the bonded person died, the phoenix died as well._

"I thought phoenixes were immortal?"

_They are, but by forming these bonds, they bind themselves to a person forever. Because of this, I am the last, _the phoenix looked up a Bella, tears welling up in its blue eyes.

Bella stretched out her hand and hesitantly brushed the feathers of the firebird. When her skin didn't burn, the brunette wiped the tears away from the bird's eyes. "You don't have to cry," she murmured, "That's not going to happen to you."

_How do you know?_

She snorted, "You know what I am but you don't understand. I'm a vampire. I'm immortal. Only fire can kill me at this point."

The phoenix trilled happily, mood instantly better. _That's right! I did forget about that, and if I'm bonded to you, fire doesn't hurt you now either._

"Really?"

_I'm a bird made of fire,_ the phoenix retorted, _We can't hurt our bonded ones._

The vampire instantly sobered up. "Wish that was true for everyone," she murmured.

_It'll be okay,_ the phoenix chirped. _All wounds, no matter how severe, heal in time._

"Thanks…" Bella started then looked at the bird puzzled, "Do you have a name?" The phoenix shook its head. "Would you like a name?"

_I wouldn't be opposed to one._

"Alright… Are you male or female?"

_Phoenixes usually don't have a sex since we don't reproduce. We just get reborn out of our own ashes._

"Right, silly me," the vampire murmured, thinking, "How about Vanhi; it's Indian, means fire."

The phoenix whistled, _I like it. Vanhi, it's nice._

"I think you display female tendencies as well."

_Why?_

"You can be as dramatic as a female," Bella deadpanned.

"Bella?" Victoria's voice came from behind her. The brunette turned her head and saw her mother and coven sister standing staring at her in shock. "Are you talking to a bird?" Her mother asked.

Bella gave them a faint smile and stood up. She bent down and stuck out her arm for the phoenix to climb on and faced her coven. "This is my familiar Vanhi," she stated, "She's a phoenix."

"Wha- Okay," Maria said, "I should really just come to expect these things. Wait, aren't phoenixes made of fire?"

"Yeah, but Vanhi said she wouldn't hurt me, she couldn't hurt me since we've apparently developed a familiar bond," the brunette answered.

"What's a familiar bond?" Victoria asked, eyeing the bird carefully.

The brunette looked at Vanhi then looked back at her coven mates. "It's like a companionship bond, a friendship bond I guess. We both get something. She gets the ability to communicate and feel emotions, while I apparently gain an immunity to fire."

_It's a give and take relationship, _Vanhi supplied.

"It's a give and take relationship," Bella said, voicing the bird's thoughts in her head.

"Are we going to need to find food for it?" Maria asked.

Vanhi trilled angrily and a white flame burst forth from her body, consuming both the phoenix and the young vampire. The other two vampires backed quickly away from the flame. When the fire died down, Bella was still standing holding Vanhi, but the bird had turned away from the other vampires.

"She's insulted," Bella explained, "Vanhi has been taking care of herself for countless lifetimes for thousands of years. She doesn't need a caretaker."

"¡Lo siento!" Maria squeaked out. The former warlord was hiding behind Victoria, using the red head as a barrier between the phoenix and herself.

"Stop hiding behind me Maria," Victoria hissed, dragging the Hispanic vampire out from behind her.

Vanhi started to make the oddest chirping noise that any of them had ever heard, her body shaking. "I think she's laughing," Bella said after a few minutes.

"Getting mocked by a phoenix, gee that's nice," Maria huffed, "Are we leaving? This desert is boring."

_If you're leaving,_ Vanhi's voice resounded in Bella's mind,_ I'm going to take off. I travel better if I can fly at my own place. I'll find you wherever you end up, and if you want me to come down, just call for me in your mind._

"Alright, but how do you feel about the cold?" Bella asked.

_Why?_

"We're heading up to the Northern parts of the Soviet Union. Our extended coven mates thought we might find something interesting up there."

Maria snorted, "Not like we haven't run into any other interesting things."

Vanhi shot Maria a dark look before turning back to Bella. _I don't like the cold, but I will follow._

"You don't have to," Bella replied hastily.

_You sure?_ Vanhi asked, _I always get the sniffles when circulating the arctic. As long as it isn't that far up, I can come._

The brunette stifled back a laugh hearing that the phoenix caught colds. "I'll let you know," she said smiling.

The bird nodded and took off in a bright ball of white flame streaking through the sky.

"She's going to catch up to us," Bella explained, looking at her mother and coven sister.

"I thought those Yetis were gonna be what finally pushed me over the edge," Maria started, "But I think it's probably going to be the phoenix…"

* * *

"What exactly are we looking for up here?" Bella asked against the biting wind. While the cold doesn't affect the vampires, it doesn't mean that the weather wasn't annoying in its own way.

"I don't know," Victoria answered, throwing her hands up, "All they said is that we might find something interesting up here."

"Who in their right mind would live in such cold?" Maria whined, the ends of her dark brown hair freezing due to the billowing wind.

"Tanya and her coven live in Alaska," Bella said, voice wavering slightly and eyes losing focus.

Victoria shot Maria a dirty look and wrapped Bella up in a hug. "It's alright sweetie," she murmured into her daughter's hair, brushing through the red streak brunette hair with her fingers.

Maria placed an apologetic hand on the other vampire's back and whispered a quiet "Sorry" into her hair as well.

Suddenly, the small coven caught the scent of a vampire on the wind heading towards them. They sprang apart and crouched down in defensive stances, unsure as to who could be approaching them. "Do you think the Amazons sent us up here to meet a vampire?" Bella whispered to her mother.

"With those three, who really knows," Victoria whispered back.

Soon, a petite dark haired vampire appeared in front of them. She had pitch-black hair, red eyes, a slender frame and olive skin tone. She was about the same height as Bella, standing roughly at 5ft 6, so still a few inches shorter than Victoria. The three vampires stared at the newcomer warily, while she just smiled at them. Maria and Victoria felt a calming sensation coming over them and started to feel undeniably happy, drawing them closer to the new vampire. Bella noticed her mother and coven sister started to behave strangely so she pressed her shield out to create skin-tight armor on them.

The two shook off the haze then glared at the strange vampire who had a sheepish look on her face. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice thickly accented, "It is my gift that made you feel the way you did. I have no control over it. It's not a harmful gift I assure you; it is just meant to make people happier in my presence, that is all."

"Who are you?" Victoria asked, still not sure about the vampire.

"Shouldn't I be the one asking the questions? After all, you are invading my territory," the dark haired vampire said, quirking her eyebrow up at the three vampires.

The wild coven looked at each other before Victoria stepped forward. "My name is Victoria, these are my coven mates Bella and Maria. We apologize for invading your territory, but our extended coven the Amazons said-" Victoria was interrupted by the strange vampire.

"Oh the Amazons sent you? Well why didn't you say that to begin with. We're old friends; they really helped me out when I needed help desperately," the dark vampire said, "Come, follow me. I have a pseudo house not to far from here, let's get out of this weather."

The other vampire dashed off back from where she came. Maria started following the vampire. Victoria was getting ready to start as well but Bella grabbed her arm. "Mom," she whispered, "I felt really strange after she came."

"The happiness thing?" Victoria asked, "She did say that was part of her gift…"

Bella shook her head, "No, it was something else. It was odd, like I should know her or something. I felt comfortable in her presence, kind of like what I do with you, just not as strong."

A strange expression crossed the redhead's face. "That's odd," she said, "So did I."

The two looked at each other for a few minutes before they decided to follow the other vampire to try and get answers to the questions that were cropping up in their minds.

They caught up to the other two and reached what looked to be a small dome sticking out of the ground, covered in snow with a puff of smoke coming out of a small chimney. "It's a lot bigger on the inside than what it looks," the dark haired woman said, moving to one side of the dome. "The door is down here." They followed the woman over to the side where she was standing and saw a series of stairs cut into the ice and rock leading down to a door.

The darker vampire ushered the three women into the strange house and closed the door. Bella and Maria started looking around the structure while Victoria kept an eye on their host. It was a strange home, built mainly of rock and cut into the ground like a makeshift cave. They could see a small hallway leading out of the domed room that led to a library and a study. The room was sparsely decorated with animal furs and rustic furniture. The fireplace in the corner and various lanterns sitting on tables and the floor provided the light in the room.

"It's not much, but it's my home," the woman said sheepishly, "So just have a seat anywhere. Would you like some blood? I have some bagged blood in my ice chest if anyone is thirsty."

"Not right now. I think we would like to know who you are since we gave you our names," Victoria answered.

"Oh, right," the woman smiled sheepishly again, "I don't get many visitors, none really so I'm not used to be around people. A few thousand years of isolation will do that to you. Anyway, my name is Didyme, Didyme Volturi…"

* * *

**And that's the end of that chapter. I know what some of you will say, oh she brought back Didyme, oh how typical, and yes, yes it is typical, because I feel bad for her. But no, I brought her back because who better to help Bella with her problem than someone who has been separated from her mate for thousands of years. Puts everything in perspective for our dear Bella anyway.**

**And the phoenix will probably be the last mythical creature I actually write about, though I might mention some in passing. **

**What else? Yes, I will be writing a chapter on what's going on with Tanya. Once I mention a main character in the actual story, I will go back to them. The reason I haven't mentioned the Cullens and Rosalie is because they aren't doing anything interesting yet, going to school, doctor thing, staying at home, eating poor defenseless animals, blah blah blah. When they do start to do some interesting things, you'll know. But anyway, we'll catch up to Tanya in a bit, and let's just say that it'll be an... interesting encounter. What you all hope will come true for her, I almost feel bad, but I don't.**

**REVIEW! If you don't like my story, that's fine, but it's not my problem. I like my story. It may seem rude of me, but I'm also not getting paid for this. I write for those who enjoy my stories and myself. **

**Til Next chapter ya'll**

**P.S. I haven't decided on a visual for Bella or Tanya yet. Still thinking, something will come to me. **


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Don't get used to this. It's so much easier to write 3rd person than 1st person, hence why I can just crank these out. But the character focused chapters are written in 1st person, adds something to the story. Well, I think it does anyway. **

**School starts tomorrow, work starts Thursday, I won't be able to write as much. I've started the next chapter, but there's no telling when it'll be finished.**

**Now, what's going on in this chapter. Your questions about Didyme will be answered, she's a little OOC though... Well, since she wasn't ever in the actual series or movies, I guess she can't ever be out of character can she? Hmm, food for thought... Bella also starts to slowly get back to normal, which is good. She's more fun to write when she's in fun loving, hippy, angry vampire mode...**

**Review, more from me at the bottom**

**Chapter 10**

"Didyme Volturi," Victoria repeated, staring at the vampire in disbelief, "Aren't you supposed to be dead?"

"Yeah," Bella piped in, "The Egyptians said that your brother Aro killed you."

Didyme quirked her eyebrow up at them, "I'm surprised they even know that, although from what I remember about Amun is that he likes to keep himself firmly in 'the know' about what is happening. Most of the world believes that I was killed by the Romanians."

"So what really happened?" Maria asked, sitting down on the questionable looking couch. "And why does everything in here resemble something out of a hunting lodge?"

"I'll get to that," Didyme said, motioning for the other two to sit down. She opened up an ice chest, pulled out a bag of blood and dumped the contents into a mug. Placing the mug on the stove over the fireplace, Didyme waited for a few moments until it was warm enough to drink then settled on the couch. The dark haired vampire took a long drink of blood and sighed. "Where to start?" The quirky vampire wondered.

"The beginning," the other three said, exasperated with the odd behavior of the fourth woman.

"Right right," Didyme said, "Like I said, what the Egyptians told you is probably closer to the truth than anyone else really knows. My brother Aro did want to kill me, actually tried and he thinks he succeeded."

"You really need to speak more clearly," Maria interjected, "Explain it to us slowly and clearly."

"Right right right, anyway, I was born in the 1300 BC in Greece," Didyme began, "Aro, of course, was my older brother. We were close, not the closest of siblings, but he looked out for me. There was always something odd about him though, like he thought more of himself than he actually was. He always wanted to be part of the Senate, but he always had higher ambitions. One day, he disappeared, later I learned that he had been changed into a vampire. Nearly a decade later, Aro came back and changed me, hoping that I would have a gift similar to his to aid in his quest to take over the vampire world. I didn't have one he considered overly useful, but it's handy nonetheless." She took a minute to take a sip of her cup of blood before she continued with her story. "My brother had other companions with him, other vampires that were either gifted or ruthless to aid him on his quest. One of the men he called brother that was going to help him rule, ended up being my mate, my beloved Marcus. We gave into the mating call and those few hundred years with him were possibly the happiest years of my life."

"So what happened?" Bella asked, moving to sit next to the older vampire.

Didyme sighed, "Aro grew mad with power, and Marcus grew weary of ruling. We were going to leave together in order to just form a small coven between the two of us, and I thought that Aro had given his blessing to the two of us. However, Marcus has a gift that is useful to my brother. He can see bonds between people: any that are forming or have the potential to form and the strength of them. I found out about Aro's plans to kill me by accident, and went out in search for help."

"The Amazons?" Victoria guessed. At Didyme's nod, the redhead continued on, "But if you were in Italy at the time, how had you known about them?"

"Oh long ago, the Amazons weren't as stationary as they are now. How do you think the legends about fierce warrior women cropped up in Greek mythology? I had heard they were ancient and that they might have a way to help me with my brother." Didyme sighed, "I had hoped that maybe they would overthrow him or something, but, despite being so old, Aro's guards still outnumbered them severely. The only thing they were able to do was Zafrina produced an illusion that made Aro believe that he had killed me. He used one of his little pet guards who could manipulate bonds to bind Marcus to the throne so that he wouldn't leave or try to harm himself." She downed the rest of her drink and set the mug down. "The Amazons helped me move up here to the frozen North, dug out this cave for me to live in and I've been here ever since. I obviously go out to hunt and get books, but other than that, it's been a very lonely existence for nearly 3000 years."

"You've been alone, separated from your mate for 3000 years?" Bella asked in disbelief.

Didyme nodded, "Yes, it's still too dangerous for me to go home. Aro would kill me in an instant and all this time alone would be for naught." The dark haired vampire looked closely at the younger vampire. "You've lost your mate to haven't you?"

The brunette vampire looked surprised, then deflated, heartbreaking sadness etched on her face. "How did you know?" Bella asked sadly.

"I recognize that look," Didyme replied, grief present in her expression, "It was the same way I looked when first separated from Marcus. Tell me, how did it happen?"

Bella's eyes started to fill with venom tears and she looked down at her lap. "My mate rejected me," she whispered, "She left me after we…" The brunette vampire couldn't finish because of the sobs that had built up in her throat.

Victoria was getting ready to move from the chair she was sitting to comfort her daughter, but Didyme beat her to it. The ancient vampire pulled the brunette into her and murmured shushing noises into the mahogany hair. "It is all right young one," the ancient murmured, "Calm yourself." When Bella's sobs subsided into hiccups and gasps, Didyme dried her face with her own sleeve. "Your mate, she is an animal drinker I'm assuming?" At the younger vampire's nod, she continued, "It figures, even in my day there were animal drinkers. There was always something odd about them though. It's as if drinking the animal blood made them less vampire."

"I don't think Tanya even felt the mating pull at all," Bella murmured, sniffling a little.

"That doesn't mean that it wasn't there young one," Didyme said comfortingly, "I'm not sure if it'll bring you an comfort, but even though she might not feel the bond, she'll feel the effects of going against it."

"But how will she feel the effects if she can't feel the bond?" Victoria asked.

"Marcus explained it to me once. The bond until the actual mating is purely instinctual, but after the mating, it becomes more of a biological function. It's smart though, so it'll attack the offending part of the pair until it drives them back to their mate."

"So what does it do?" Maria questioned, truly curious. None of them knew much about the mating bond, and the Amazons didn't know that much either. Senna and Zafrina would rather drink animal blood than be parted from each other so they never had this problem.

Didyme shrugged, "Depends on the bond really. Just like each vampire and mating pair is unique, each mating bond is unique. I know that Marcus descended into a melancholy existence since we've been forced apart and I'm most likely losing my marbles… Of course, in Marcus's case it could have something to do with Aro's little pet wrapping him so tightly in her power, and me, well, being alone for so many years will cause anyone to go nuts. Though I have heard that those who try to be intimate with anyone other than their mate after mating, they start to feel sick and then an intense pain if they manage to go through with it."

Bella let out a straggled laugh. "That does kind of make me feel a little better," she said, "From what I know about Tanya, she's a slut." She giggled a little, "Calling her names is making me feel better. Anyway, she's a succubus, sleeping around is part of her nature. It's kind of ironic now that the bond she can't feel will bring her great pain if she tries to sleep around."

"Oh dear, a succubus?" Didyme wondered, "She's going to be hurting soon."

The brunette vampire winced, "Is it wrong of me to feel happy that my mate is going to be hurting?"

"No!" Maria and Victoria yelled at the same time. "She deserves it, hurting my child in such a way," Victoria seethed, "If she thinks she's going to be hurting now, just wait until I get my hands on her."

"Um you?" Maria said, "You may be her mother, but I'm her sister and a former warlord so I deserve to lay into her as well."

"Are you not going to defend your mate?" Didyme asked Bella.

Bella shrugged, "I feel like she kind of deserves it. I mean, not only did she leave after we mated and I confessed my love, but she called me a liar as well. Not feeling the mating call due to the animal blood, I don't like it but I understand. Doesn't mean I'll forgive her anytime soon of course, but questioning my integrity? When I see her again, I'm gonna lay into her…" The brunette's voice trailed off, pain evident in it. Didyme put a comforting arm around the younger vampire and shushed her again.

Victoria had conflicting emotions inside of her at seeing the ancient vampire comforting her daughter. She felt like she should be jealous at someone else helping Bella, a stranger no less, but oddly she wasn't. "Why do I feel so comfortable with you?" Victoria blurted out. When the other three looked at her questioningly, the redhead continuing, addressing the ancient vampire. "Why do I, well, Bella and I, why do we feel like we should know you, or are so comfortable with you?"

Didyme looked confused, "Don't you know?" When they just continued to look at her confusedly, the dark haired vampire continued, "I'm sorry, I just assumed that you knew. I mean, you called Bella your daughter, and I can tell that you changed her, due to the red streaks in her hair, but I thought you knew?"

"Knew what?" Bella asked, straightening up and out of Didyme's embrace.

"Maybe it's best if you tell me your story first, then I'll tell you why you're feeling the way that you are," the ancient suggested.

"Short version, I met Bella when she was a human, as a child. She was abandoned in the forest, so I took her in and raised her then changed her when she was 25," Vic said, finishing her story.

"And how did you feel when you saw Bella for the first time?" Didyme asked.

The redhead scrunched up her face in confusion, "I, well, it felt like, like I had to care for her and protect her when no one else would. It was odd I had never felt that way about anyone except…"

"Except your own children?" Didyme guessed.

Bella gasped, "Mom you didn't tell me you had children."

Victoria smiled weakly at her daughter, "I was 25 when I was turned in the 1500's. I was married by the time I was 13, and I had 3 boys by the time I was changed, all of them on their way to becoming men. It's just the way things were in my day."

"Did you keep track of them after you were turned?" Maria asked, truly intrigued. She didn't know that her older friend and pseudo coven leader had a family before she was changed.

"I tried," Victoria shrugged, "It was hard in the beginning because of the thirst, but eventually I did managed to see them again. I saw as they all got married and had families of their own, but with the plague, feminine and religious wars, as well as people moving to the new world, I lost track of them. I guess I just assumed they died, but what do they have to do with anything."

"Well I can guarantee at least one in your line survived because it is evident in Bella here," Didyme said.

"What?!" Maria, Victoria and Bella yelled.

Didyme nodded, "What you were feeling towards Bella, Victoria, and what you are both feeling towards me is what is called a familial blood bond. It's a way a vampire can recognize someone from their own line, a family member or descendant."

Victoria and Bella just looked at each other, then back at Didyme. "So what you're saying," Victoria started, "Is that Bella is my great how ever many granddaughter, and both of us are descended from you?"

The ancient vampire nodded. "I don't remember my children myself, the memory has long faded from my mind by now, but I know that I had them. Seeing you two here and feeling the bond between us confirms it."

"So I'm the odd vampire out here?" Maria said, deflating.

"It's okay Maria," Didyme said, patting the Hispanic vampire on the arm, "Some vampires don't ever form familial blood bonds, mainly because they don't have any family to form the bond with. It only works with direct descendants or ancestors. In many cases, the familial coven bond is just as powerful as powerful as a blood bond, though in some cases the reverse is also true, where the blood bond is weaker than the coven bond."

"Examples?" Bella asked.

Didyme shrugged, "When I was with the Volturi, I had heard tales of a vampire long ago who turned his children when they were old enough to not be immortal children. He didn't take into account that his children hated him for having so many wives and treating them horribly, so once they were changed, it stayed with them and intensified. The bonds, unless externally influenced, don't make you feel anything you wouldn't normally feel. Victoria, you probably felt more protective over Bella when you first met than normal because she was human and a child. It was just your bond recognizing that you had to step up more than normal."

"So if I had met Bella later in life, we probably wouldn't have developed a mother and child relationship?" Victoria asked.

The ancient vampire just shrugged again, "Probably not, but we can't really tell what would have been, only what was, and you two have developed a wonderful mother daughter relationship, one that can't be challenged."

Bella and Victoria smiled at each other, and the redhead walked over and placed a kiss on the top of the brunette's head. Bella smiled again and turned to Didyme. "So since Vic is my mom, and we're related to you, does that make you my grandma?" She said coyly.

"Just don't call me granny," was Didyme's response.

"Mhm," Bella replied before sitting up, "I forgot, I have to call Vanhi. It's not that cold in here so she should be fine." The brunette walked over towards the door and went outside.

"Vanhi?" Didyme asked, looking at Maria and Victoria.

"Don't ask," Maria replied. Bella walked back into the room and the other three looked at her. "Where's…" Maria started but was interrupted by a flash of white flame in front of her. The Hispanic vampire jumped back as the colorful bird appeared in front of her. "Must you do that?!" She yelled at the bird.

Vanhi trilled and flew over to Bella, perching on her arm. _Don't tell them, but the white fire can't hurt them,_ Vanhi chuckled through Bella's mind.

The brunette was about to reply when Didyme stood up and approached the bird. "A phoenix," she whispered in awe, "I thought they had all died out. I hadn't seen one since I was a little girl, even then I thought I was imagining things."

"This is Vanhi," Bella introduced, "She's my familiar. Vanhi, this is Didyme. She's actually my ancestor, but we'll just call her Grandma for now."

The phoenix trilled again, and hopped over to the older vampire and rubbed her with her beak. "How did you get her to like you?" Maria asked, staring at the bird.

"Grandma didn't insult her like you did," Bella said.

"Stop!" Victoria order, "While it nice for you two to be bickering again, I don't particularly care to hear it right now."

Bella snickered while Maria pouted. The brunette turned towards her ancestor who was still cooing at the firebird. "Grandma, if you've been alone all of this time, how did you get a lot of this stuff?" Bella asked.

The ancient vampire looked down a little guilty. "Well I haven't actually been alone, there is someone who visits me from time to time," she said sheepishly.

"Who?" Victoria asked.

"Her name is Heidi, she works for the Volturi, or well she appears to anyway," Didyme said, "She was my first changling, my first and only childe."

"You better tell us the story then," Maria suggested.

"I will, she'll be coming soon anyway. That's the reason why I was out there right now, because I thought you were her. Anyway, it was one of the few times I dared to venture out away from the security of this hovel, about 400 years ago maybe. I was in… Germany I think? And I saw Heidi working as… Well, working in a questionable establishment. One of her… clients ended up beating her nearly to death while I was watching, so I ate him and changed her. I helped her get through her newborn period and taught her everything I knew about vampires and the Volturi, what they were like, things like that. When that time was up, I knew I should be heading back here in case anyone caught my scent that shouldn't, and Heidi agreed to go live with this other coven. I think the coven leader's name was Hilda? She had one other female living with her, so Heidi would have company. I heard from her years later and she told me that the Volturi destroyed her coven because they accused Hilda of having too many newborns at one time, even though she had just changed one other young woman. Heidi said she joined before Aro could have the opportunity to get… Cassie… Casey… C somebody to work their evil magic on her bonds and make her completely loyal to Aro."

"But wait, doesn't Aro have the ability to read thoughts, memories, something like that? Wouldn't he see you in her thoughts, or see that she wasn't loyal to him?" Vic asked.

"Psh, you didn't think I learned a way to block my brother from certain memories," Didyme dismissed, "He was so nosey, always touching people to keep up to date on things, I hated it. I learned to block things out of my memories so he couldn't snoop. Of course I taught my childe how to do these things. I can teach you guys as well if you want?"

"That would be great!" Bella squealed. Vanhi huffed in annoyance and flew over to the fireplace, settling down on top of the fire. _I'm going to take a nap if you guys are going to do boring stuff like this_, she said, curling up in the flame. "She's bored," Bella explained.

Didyme spent the next few days teaching the Wild coven how to build a wall in their minds and put the memories they didn't want a nosey Volturi leader to see behind the wall and place unimportant memories outside of the wall. "This technique works for any vampire with passive intrusive gifts," she said after she had finished teaching them all that she knew.

"It's quite handy incase my shield doesn't work," Bella said flopping down, feeding Vanhi some fish. Even though the phoenix claimed she could feed herself, she refused to go outside in the cold to fetch some, and 'flashing' fish to her doesn't work.

"Mom," a voice sounded at the door along with a knock, and a tall, slender female vampire entered the room. She had long mahogany colored hair, and was even taller than Victoria. "Oh," she said, a slight German accent to her voice, "I didn't know you had company."

"Heidi," Didyme stood to greet her childe with a hug, "I would like to introduce you. This is Victoria, Maria and Bella. Vic and Bella are actually my descendants so I guess that would make you and Vic sisters, and Bella your niece." The ancient vampire stated thoughtfully.

The other 4 vampires in the room just looked at her like she had lost her marbles, and she probably had at this point. "Anyway," Victoria said, turning to her so called 'sister,' "The Amazons sent us up here. We're part of their extended coven, so apparently they wanted us to meet Didyme."

"Oh the Amazons!" Heidi cried, "Mom has told me so much about them. I've always wanted to meet them, but why did they send you here?"

"Maybe they know that we can help Grandma," Bella suggested. The other four women snapped their heads towards Bella, the ancient vampire tuned back into the conversation. "No think about it," the brunette said, "I'm basically a shield. Well, not so much a shield, but I can wrap skin tight armor around all of us that will keep us from getting harmed from mental gifts, and most physical ones as well."

Heidi snorted, "Like the gift of that sadistic bitch Jane, girl is a piece of work. I know that we take on some traits of our maker, but that girl seemed to get every ounce of craziness that Aro has in him."

"Anyway," Bella stopped the other vamp before she could go further with her rant, "We don't need to take out all of the guard, or even storm the castle or whatever the Volturi live in."

"Castle," Heidi and Didyme confirmed at the same time.

"- We just have to take out this Casey, Cassie person," Bella finished.

"Chelsea," Heidi corrected, "But how can taking out Chelsea help?"

"Well if you kill a vampire, their gift is no longer in effect," Maria stated out of experience, "I mean, I should know. I've killed a lot of vampires in my day. What is interesting though is if you don't want the vampire, just their gift, you can remove their head and not burn it and the gift stays in effect until you burn the head…"

"Maria," Vic yelled, "Too much information."

"What?" Maria gestured down at her body, "These scars aren't just for show you know. And I know that you and Bella have your fair share from fighting with the Amazons, but I earned these in war. I'm quite proud of my accomplishments."

"Just not the whole blood thirsty savage thing," the redhead continued.

"Not one of my finer moments," Maria replied, deflating.

"But how do we get Chelsea away from the rest of the guard?" Heidi asked, getting the conversation back to the topic at hand, "She's never usually seen without her mate Afton and one other guard. She's Lord Marcus's personal guard, so she rarely ever leaves since he's like…"

"It's probably to keep him trapped," Didyme said sadly, "That bitch probably has to keep weaving him in her power."

"We need more help," Bella murmured, thinking. She glanced over at her phoenix happily munching on some fish and an idea formed in her mind. "Vanhi," she said, motioning the bird over. When the phoenix had perched on her arm, Bella continued, "Can you flash people here? Without hurting them anyway?"

Vanhi puffed up, _Of course I can. I told you the white flame doesn't hurt anyone._

"Great, can you flash to South American and get our Amazon sisters? We're going to need Zafrina's power in order to 'defeat' the Volturi," the brunette said.

The bird trilled and disappeared in a flash of white flame. A few minutes later, Vanhi flashed back and dumped three disgruntled Amazons on the floor. "Bella!" Senna gasped, spotting the brunette. She squealed and grabbed her favorite sister into a hug. The normally quiet vampire spun the brunette around a few times before setting her back down. "It's been a while," she said, "How have you been?"

"Good times and bad times," Bella replied weakly, "I'll tell you all about it later."

"And we'll be excited to hear it," Zafrina said, coming to stand next to her mate, embracing her sister, "But what I would like to know now is how did you get a phoenix and why did you have it bring us here?"

"Her name is Vanhi," Bella said, motioning towards the bird who was curled back up in the fireplace, "She's my familiar, we've bonded. Anyway, I asked her to bring you here because Grandma as been alone for far too long, it's time to get back at the Volturi and get rid of Aro."

"Grandma?" Kachiri asked, rubbing her head.

"Vic and Bella are actually my descendents," Didyme stated proudly, "Oh and by the way, Amazons, this is my childe Heidi. Heidi, these are the Amazons, Kachiri, Zafrina and Senna."

"It is good to meet you," Kachiri said, "and it's good to see you again, old friend. I see that now it is time to get you back to where you need to be."

"Bella is working on a plan," the ancient vampire replied.

"That's why I had Vanhi bring you guys," Bella said, "We're going to need some high class illusions to make this work, as well as some more fighters in case what I think will happen doesn't."

"So what's the plan?" Victoria asked, moving to stand next to her daughter.

The brunette waved them all around her and the seven vampires moved in around the youngest vampire there. "Alright now here's what we're gonna do…" Bella started, a mischievous glint in her eyes…

* * *

**Just curious, who do you all think Rosalie's mate should be? Cannot be Victoria, Maria or any of the Denalis. I would like your suggestion and your reason behind the suggestion. If your reason is valid enough, I might change who I've picked out. Put some thought into it though, suggestions that just have a name and "They would look so cute/cool together" will be ignored. That doesn't really tell me anything, I want to see you guys interacting with the story, so based on the Rosalie you saw at the beginning of the story, and the Ice Queen she becomes, who would you pick?**

**... Review, now...**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thank you everyone for your awesome reviews! I gave you guys a little gift scene at the end of this chapter as thanks. I had most of this written before I started school and work, so it'll be a long time before you see the next one. But there will be a major time jump, like when Bella and Victoria first joined the Amazons, probably not as big as that time jump though. We're close to Bella and You all know who meeting for the first time. That's probably what's going to take a while to write, I have to be very careful with how that goes or I might have a mutiny on my hands from all of you.**

**Anyway, I got all of your suggestions for Rosalie's mate, sorry I didn't reply to everyone, it was just very overwhelming. Everyone had good reasons as to why a certain person should be Rose's mate, so I had to make a decision based on my story line. And... Well, you'll have to find out. It's actually one of the people I originally picked out, so it's good. **

**So, what's going on in this chapter, the Volturi and surprising events unfold within the walls of the castle. It was very chaotic, and all over the place, but what part of this story hasn't been, I mean really.**

**And now, for Bella's simple, but brilliant plan, review, s'il vous plait**

**Chapter 11**

"This isn't going to work," Maria hissed from her hiding place near the Volturi castle.

"Shut-up Maria, of course it's going to work," Bella retorted, "Everyone is in position, and this is so going to work, don't be such a downer." It'd been over a month since the Wild coven had shown up at Didyme's doorstep and decided to help the ancient vampire get back to her mate. They spent much of the time spying on the Volturi and figuring out their habits. Bella had also been spending a lot of time with her 'aunt' Heidi, and has been catching up on the language and culture that has changed over the years. They've started building a great relationship between them, and while they didn't have a familial bond or even a coven bond between them to tie them together, they knew they would be great friends.

"Bella, are you sure you have enough energy to keep your shields up on everyone?" Victoria asked her daughter, looking worriedly as Bella's eyes started to glow. She had been constantly using her shield for the passed few weeks to keep their scents hidden from the Volturi guard and other vampires wandering the streets.

"I'll be okay," Bella murmured, "Just make sure not to wander to far away so I can recharge if I need to."

"I'm not leaving you," Vic murmured, "Is everyone is position?"

"As far as I can tell?" Maria, "Heidi is going to lure Chelsea and Afton outside, while Zafrina uses her illusion to make it seem like they're still inside. No one will notice they're gone until it's too late."

Bella nodded, "It's the safest plan as far as I can tell. I'm hoping that Chelsea will have wrapped so many people in her gift that when she is torched, they'll be free and won't fight back."

"We just have to worry about Aro and Jane then," the redhead said.

"Doesn't Jane have a twin brother?" Maria asked.

"Right, him too."

"And Caius," Bella added, "Grandma told me he's a hateful and vindictive vampire, extremely blood thirsty. From what Heidi's told me, most of the Volturi are like that. Apparently she has to lure tourists in once a week just to keep up with their demands, why do they need to feed so much and why they don't just go hunt themselves is beyond me."

"So it's not just animal drinkers that get you into a snit, but human drinkers as well," Didyme said, appearing behind the Wild coven. She had been present for one of Bella's many rants on the evils of animal drinkers, which had gotten even more impassioned since the… incident as it was being referred to as. Bella had started to feel better since meeting Didyme and hearing her story, but her heart still ached for Tanya, even if she wanted to claw her eyes out at the same time.

"I dislike those who pick on the innocent," Bella replied, "Animals don't hurt that many people a year and many are necessary for the environment. Tourist don't do anything wrong either other than annoy locals. Everyone is a tourist at some point in their lives." The brunette huffed, "I eat criminals who prey on other people, so they're free game, and other people living on the fringes of society."

"Don't forget those already dying," Maria said, never taking her eye off the entrance to the castle, waiting for the signal from Heidi.

"Yes, and the dying. I mean, who wants to die slowly anyway? Just a quick bite and a gulp and it's all over for them," Bella commented, "Though I don't think I could eat a little old woman, or a little old man. I would feel so guilty."

"Hush, all of you we're supposed to be watching for Heidi," Victoria hissed.

"Did you just tell me to shush?" Didyme asked, looking at her oldest descendent.

"Didyme, Mom, whatever, you've partly lost your marbles. Wait until after we get you and Marcus back together and mostly sane to scold me," the redhead said. She caught sight of the tall figure of the Volturi 'fisher' walking out of the gate, followed closely by two other vampires. "There they are," she whispered. Vic turned towards her daughter and gave her a look.

The brunette rolled her eyes and grabbed a hold of one of Didyme's hands, drawing energy. "We'll stay here," she said, "While you, Maria, Kachiri and Heidi take out the two nitwits down there. I miss all the fun."

"Just can't afford you losing concentration," Victoria said, "Zafrina and Senna are counting on you to keep them hidden while they keep the illusion going in the castle."

"Yes yes, I know, it was, after all, my plan," Bella snorted, "Now get out of here, you have a couple of nosey vampires to decapitated and burn."

Victoria and Maria slinked off towards where Heidi was with the other two vampires. They were joined shortly by Kachiri and they stuck to the shadows created by the tall buildings and the flickering street lights in the darkness of twilight. "Do you feel kind of bad that we're basically killing two vampires when all we need is to kill one?" Maria asked.

"Everyone knows if you kill a vampire, you kill their mate too," Victoria replied, "It's common sense, leave no one to seek retribution."

"How did Heidi even get them to come out?" Kachiri asked.

"She's very persuasive," Victoria returned.

They crept towards the three vampires standing in the shadow of the castle. It seemed like the two who had their cloaks on and hoods up, Afton and Chelsea, were bickering with Heidi in Italian. The tall vampire caught their eyes and discretely nodded signaling to take out Afton first.

Maria and Victoria grabbed the male vampire while Kachiri and Heidi took hold of Chelsea. Afton put up a quite a fight, hissing and biting, getting a few good scratches in, but he was no match for Maria, who fought in wars for decades. Victoria's gift aided her in evading Afton's deadlier swings, so what she lacked in experience, she made up for in skill. Soon, the struggling vampire was subdued and dismembered; lying in pieces in the alley they forced the other vampires into.

They turned and saw Chelsea spitting and hissing furiously, eyes dark due to rage, but twisting and rolling from fear, most likely because her gift wasn't working. Heidi held the struggling bond manipulator while Kachiri tugged and pulled her off her head. The girl obviously relied on the use of her gift too much because she didn't know how to fight them off of her. When the two vampires were lying in pieces in the alleyway, Victoria stepped out and motioned Bella and Didyme over.

Heidi handed Didyme a box of matches. "If anyone deserves to light the bitch up, it's you mom," she said, taking a step back. Bella gave the ancient vampire's hand a light squeeze before stepping out of the alley along with the other three vampires.

Didyme stared down at the vampire and her mate that kept her from hers. "I hope you enjoyed your existence and that following Aro was worth it," she murmured before dropping a lit match on the bodies. She watched as the last of the vampire flesh in front of her disappeared into a cloud of purple smoke and walked out of the alley, feeling lighter than every. "I feel better," she said once she reached her companions.

Heidi opened her mouth ready to say something when Zafrina and Senna rushed out of the castle. "You guys have to come see this," Zafrina said, "You're never going to believe this."

The eight vampires rushed into the castle, passed the confused secretary who was looking around like she didn't know what was going on and down into the throne room. They burst through the doors and found complete and utter chaos. One of the kings was sitting on his throne weeping; one boyish looking vampire was tossing around a creepy little girl vampire. The other two kings were fighting with women who looked like they were trying very hard to decapitate them.

"That's Marcus," Didyme whispered, motioning towards the weeping king on the far right, "Aro and Caius are apparently about to be decapitated by their wives Sulpicia and Athenodora?"

"And Alec looks like he is about to kill his bitch of a sister," Heidi wondered, "What is going on?"

With animalistic roars, the two women ripped Aro and Caius's heads off and tossed them away from the bodies. Alec subdued his sister, but didn't decapitate her. When the two queens of the Volturi roared, the guard present in the room calmed down and finally noticed the newcomers in the room.

Marcus looked up slowly, his sobs subsiding and spotted Didyme standing at the entrance of the room, looking at him with love and longing. "Marcus?" She whispered, taking a few hesitant steps towards the man.

Before anyone could register what was happening, Marcus was in front of Didyme, crushing her into him, meeting her mouth with his. "Okay, this is awkward," Bella said after a few minutes when it didn't seem that the two reunited mates were going to stop anytime soon. The brunette looked over to the dais again and saw the two women smiling at each other and holding hands. She walked over to the two of them and decided to introduce herself. "So I'm Bella," she said, placing a hand on her chest, "And you know my grandma over there, Didyme. What exactly happened here?"

"Grandma?" The blonde woman said in amusement, "Anyway, I'm Athenodora."

"And I'm Sulpicia," the darker haired woman added, "I was Aro's wife and Dora was Caius wife."

"They had us trapped under Chelsea's power so we wouldn't know that we weren't their mates, but each others," Dora picked back up.

"Well that's twisted," Bella replied blinking before turning around to face the boy who was fighting the angry looking girl. "And Alec was it? Why were you fighting Janet? Isn't she your sister?"

Alec let out a chuckle, "Jane, her name is Jane. Aro had Chelsea wrap me up in her power to keep me away from my mate. Did someone execute Corin too? Her power was also used to keep us trapped."

"Yes, she needs to be executed as well," Sulpicia ordered, "She was used to keep us and Chelsea complacent so that we would never leave, never question anything." Two large vampires ran out of the room and came back a few minutes later.

"Corin and Santiago have been dealt with my lady," the larger of the two vampires said.

"Thank you Felix," Dora said, "But why did you destroy Santiago?"

"I've never really liked him," Felix replied, "Plus, he was in the area of Corin so Demetri and I thought, two birds, one stone."

"Well that's a time saver," Bella commented, before turning to look at her aunt, "How did you lure Afton and Chelsea outside then Heidi if this other vampire kept her wanting to stay here?"

"I am that good," Heidi replied, flipping her hair. "But no really, I have no idea."

"I can explain that," Zafrina said, "My illusion kept her and anyone really, from noticing that Heidi was using her power to lure the two out of the castle, and your shield armor kept the gifts of those in the castle at bay."

"Mhm," Bella murmured. She glanced back over at Didyme and Marcus and it didn't see like they had come up for air yet so she turned her attention back to the bodies of the kings on the floor and the short girl Alec had a hold of that was glaring holes into her head.

"Alec you never did answer why you were trying to kill your sister Janet?"

"My name is Jane you…" The girl's voice cut off as Alec twisted her head off.

"Sorry," Alec apologized, "A side effect of Chelsea and Corin's power is that some of my memories were suppressed. She's the reason why our parents died and we were almost burned at the stake. Her craziness almost got us killed, and did get us trapped here for hundreds of years." He fumed, "Jane was always a little unhinged. She could use her power as a human, and enjoyed torturing people. She basically tortured our parents to death, and when the townspeople found out, they took both of us and tried to kill us. The rest of the story is pretty self-explanatory. Aro changed us, and by the time I woke up, I was already wrapped up in the two bitches' powers."

"Yikes," Maria murmured, "And people thought I was crazy when I was running the Southern Wars."

"Who says you're not crazy now?" Heidi interjected. The two of them had developed a strange relationship when everyone was busy planning the downfall of the Volturi. They were friends, but they also could get under each other skin like nobody else could.

"Nobody asked you fisher!"

"Bite me shorty."

Victoria walked over and hit the both of them on the head. "I can't tell if you're supposed to be my sister right now or another child, and I don't really want to deal with another one at the present. I have one, and a half I guess, and that's plenty," Victoria hissed, "So behave, both of you."

"Who's the half?" Maria asked, rubbing the back of her head.

"Maria!" Vic seethed, "Shut-up."

Bell turned to look back at the two vampire queens who were staring at her family, gaping. "Ignore them," Bella said, "They're always like this. So what's going to happen now?"

Dora smirked in amusement, "Well, we're going to light these two idiots up, and if Alec has no objections, possibly Jane as well."

"I don't know about killing her right away," the boyish vampire replied, "Maybe just keep her beheaded for a while down in the dungeons or something and see how she feels later."

Sulpicia nodded, "All right, Felix will you escort Jane downstairs and make sure she can't put herself back together, and Demetri will you take Aro and Cauis's bodies out to burn?"

"Yes milady," they replied, briefly looking at each other for a moment before setting out to do what the queens of Volterra asked of them.

When they left, Bella turned to her mother. "They are so gay," she said.

"Bella," Vic chastised.

"What? I'm just stating a fact. They're totally mates, apparently Aro had a thing about not wanting people with mates on the guard since Alec was kept from his mate, and those two lover boys were kept from each other," the brunette hummed, "and of course separating Grandma and Marcus and you two up there, just not a very happy place to live, this castle."

"That's going to change, we assure you of that," Dora said, "Especially now that Didyme is back with us."

"What?" The dark haired vampire said, breaking away from Marcus, "Did I miss something?"

"No Grandma, just the execution of four Volturi members and the probation of a fifth, other than that, nothing exciting happened," Bella said, glancing at the ancient vampire.

"Don't be smart with me Bella," Didyme returned. The brunette smiled sheepishly at her grandmother while the ancient vampire just rolled her eyes and moved towards the two women on the dais. "Picia, Dora, it's so good to see you again," she cried, hugging both of the women.

"It's been too long Di," Dora said. She and Sulpicia embraced their lost sister; eyes filled with unshed venom tears.

"Excuse me my ladies," Demetri approached, bowing, "I hate to interrupt this reunion, but I'm sure many of us in the guard are wondering what is going to happen now. While many of us didn't come here by choice, the Volturi served a purpose to keep the vampire community in line. Who's going to do that now?"

Dora and Sulpicia looked at each other. "We can keep the Volturi going," Sulpicia said, "I have a gift, similar to Aro's, but more effective. I can project a person's memory for others to see so that one person isn't making the decisions. If Marcus is okay with it of course."

"I grow weary of ruling," Marcus admitted, "If you and Athenodora are going to be the new faces of the Volturi, perhaps Didyme would consider taking my place on the throne."

"I don't know Marcus," the dark haired vampire replied, "I don't really know how to interact with other vampires that well, I've been alone for so long."

"It'll be okay Mom," Heidi said, "You're doing wonderfully right now, and with your gift to make people feel happier, you can totally do this."

"Yeah Grandma, three Queens instead of three Kings, it'll be revolutionary. I mean, women are gaining equal rights all over the world, why not in the vampire community as well?" Bella squealed, "This is so exciting!"

"Kachiri, Zafrina, Senna, will you stay?" Didyme asked, "You guys are some of the oldest vampires in the world and we would greatly benefit from you're experience."

Kachiri shook her head, "I'm sorry Didyme, but this isn't our place. Our home is in the rainforest, protecting it from intruders. Your place is here, ruling the vampire world." The ancient Amazonian turned to Bella. "Can you send us home now Bell?"

"I thought her power was shielding, not teleportation?" Felix said.

"Oh, I don't teleport," Bella said, "A friend of mine does. Vanhi!" A ball of flame appeared and the phoenix appeared out of it and landed on the brunette's shoulder. The vampires in the room not used to the bird jumped back in shock. "Hey Vanhi," Bella cooed, "Can you flash the Amazons back home please?"

_Of course,_ Vanhi trilled, disappearing with the Amazons in a swirl of white flame.

"What was that?" Alec asked.

"A phoenix," Bella shrugged, "You get used to her after a bit. Well, other than Maria, who continues to antagonize her for unknown reasons."

"Keeps me young," Maria answered.

"You're a vampire Maria," Vic said, "It's not like we get old."

"Mentally Vic, mentally."

"Should we add another to our ruling party?" Dora asked, "Just to give another opinion and add more diversity and security. Picia and I would like to get away and some point, and I know that you and Marcus want to get away at some point too Di, should we have another ruler to keep the balance in these situations?"

"Marcus can help me when you guys leave," Didyme answered, "But you're right, we do need another." The ancient vampire turned to her childe, "Heidi, would you like the job? As a substitute ruler whenever any of us are away."

"Wha-? Me? What about Vic or Maria, or even Bella, though the latter two are a little crazy?" Heidi blustered, pointing at the Wild coven.

Victoria shook her head, "We'll gladly stay for a while Heidi, but you have to understand that we're basically nomads. While we do have more permanent homes, they're in the Americas. And besides, ruling is just not my thing, it's hard enough dealing with these two."

"And I got my fill of ruling something in the southern wars," Maria said.

"I want to stay with my family," Bella answered, "Vic is my mom and Maria is my very unusual sister. We're a coven, a family, all for one and one for all and all that."

"Three Musketeers?" Sulpicia asked.

"It's one of my favorite books," Bella clapped her hands excitedly, "Ooh, and Twenty Years After, and the Count of Monte Cristo… Really all of Alexander Dumas books are amazing."

"I can see a family resemblance," Marcus chuckled, looking between Didyme and Bella, "She shares your exuberance my love."

"Marcus shush," Didyme whispered to her mate before addressing Heidi once more, "Well Heidi, you heard their answers, now what is yours?"

The statuesque vampire thought for a moment before nodding. "Alright, but on one condition, it's only for when one of you is gone and I can do what I please for the rest of them time."

Sulpicia nodded, "We can accept those conditions, and all of you really. You don't have to stay here if you don't like. You're free to come and go as you please."

"I plan to stay my lady," Demetri stepped forward, with Felix right beside him, "Well, we plan to stay. It's nice having a home, though we might leave for vacations and such.'

"But Demetri, what about Amun? Surely you want to return to your original coven?" Dora asked.

"Ah," Bella cried, "You were the tracker Amun talked about, this makes sense now."

Demetri smirked at her before turning back to the queens, bowing his head, "While Amun is my maker, he is also a little on the crazy side, and too far behind the times. I don't think he would accept my mate." The tracker placed his hand on Felix's arm, and Bella mouthed 'I told you so' at her mother.

"I would like to stay as well," Alec stepped forward, "If my mate Renata desires to stay as well. I would also like to watch over Jane, maybe she'll change."

"So Renata's your mate," Dora mused, "No wonder Aro kept you two apart; he couldn't have his shield distracted, but yes, if she desires to stay, you may, all of you may stay if you want."

Various other guards in the room said they would stay if they were allowed to leave. As technology and travel was improving around the world, it was easier to keep in touch if an emergency arouse so the guard didn't need to be present at all times; they could go out and explore the world, much like the Wild Coven was doing. The queens decided it was best not to inform the vampire world of the change in rulers at the present moment in time; the different covens would find out eventually and it would give the three women time to settle into their new roles.

"Vic, Bella, Maria," Didyme started once the guard had dispersed, "Will you three stay here, for a little while at least."

"You're all welcome to stay here as long as you like," Dora added from her position in Sulpicia's lap.

"And I would like to get to know you better," Marcus said, "From your bonds, I can tell that you are my wife's family, blood related or not."

Victoria, Maria and Bella looked at each other for a few moments. "We'll stay," Vic said finally, "Until we feel like it's time to leave anyway."

"Or until Bella decides it's time to kick her mate in the ass," Maria commented.

Marcus turned toward the younger vampire. "I noticed you had a fractured and strained mating bond and I wondered how that happened," the old king said.

"Come on Grandpa," Bella said, pulling Marcus out of the room, "It's a long story."

* * *

**1 Year Later- Denali, Alaska**

"Ugggh," Tanya yelled as one of her many vampire lovers left the house, again unsatisfied. "What is wrong with me?"

"What is wrong this time Tanya?" Her sister Irina walked into the room; her normally amber colored eyes, tinted with more red than usual, glanced quickly over her eldest sister looking for any outer causes of distress or pain.

"Same problem," the strawberry blonde moaned. She got up and started to pace around the room. "I haven't had a release in over a year Irina, nearly two years by now actually. It is starting to get painful, like the orgasm is simply building up inside of me but can't come out." Tanya stopped pacing and glanced around, "Where are the others?"

"Carmen and Eleazar are on a getaway to Spain and Kate's gone to get some privacy with Garrett. He needs to hunt to, so they'll be away for a while," Irina replied dismissively, "But Tanya, I'm really worried about you. This is not normal, especially for a succubus, when did this problem start?"

Tanya sighed and collapsed on the sofa, looking over at her sister. "I think it started a little while after I got back from my vacation in Australia. You know the Cullens were coming, that's why I came back, can't resist flirting with Edward and relieving him of his V-card. Anyway, I started feeling a dull ache in me that seemed to come from my very being whenever I flirted with him. When the succubus tendencies started to get the better of me, I went out in search of someone to sleep with, and I couldn't! It was like I couldn't perform. The second time I tried, I was in such pain that I couldn't even focus properly, so I decided to try again with a vampire and it was worse!" She huffed and threw her head back, "So I decided to give it a little time. The pain went away, so I tried it again and the pain was so excruciating I wanted to walk into a fire by myself."

Irina cocked her head and stared at her sister for a few moments. "Have you tried… well, you know?"

"Touching myself, masturbating," Tanya deadpanned, "Yes, yes I have and that doesn't work either. I don't get aroused, or wet, or turned on, or anything. I just feel empty." The strawberry collapsed back on the couch with a dramatic sigh. "I'm either horny and unable to satisfy my desires, or undeniably empty. It's frustrating."

The pale blonde vampire tilted her head back and forth, thinking. "I think I know what the problem is," Irina sighed, "It's part of the reason why I continue to drink human blood, despite your and Kate's protests."

"What is it?" Tanya asked, "And I know you prefer human blood to animal; you only drink animal blood every now and then to dilute your eye color faster for when our cousins visit."

Irina chuckled, "Yes, snobby bunch they are. Anyway, I feel like I know what your problem is, but I don't think you were honest with me about what happened in Australia and why you really left. You were a bit… well, off when you came back."

Tanya looked over at her sister and sighed, "You're right, I didn't tell you the truth, any of you really." The coven leader sat up on the couch and looked down at her lap, clenching her hands. "It was about a month after I left for my vacation," Tanya started, "I found a female vampire washed up on my private beach. Her name was Bella, Isabella really, and she was an unusual vampire. She didn't sparkle in the sunlight, had the loveliest blue eyes with flecks of crimson in them. She drank human blood, and had to take energy from people, or vampires, in order to supplement her own energy."

The strawberry blonde stood up and walked to look out the large window, "I could tell instantly that she was attracted to me, but she didn't act on anything." The vampire smirked back at her sister, "She was a challenge. I hadn't met anyone, other than Edward of course, that could resist me so I set about seducing her. It was a lengthy project; she didn't really care for animal drinking vampires." Tanya's eyes became unfocused. "It all went wrong somehow though; when I finally seduced her, she confessed her love for me. I mean, I care for her, I found her attractive, a great friend, and an excellent lover, but I couldn't get into a relationship with her. What would happen if my mate came along? What would he say about my relationship with Bella?" She sighed again, "Plus she wasn't very trustworthy, making up stories about her coven and extended coven. I think she was just a nomad secluded from others for too long."

Irina blinked, a suspicion that formed in her mind when Tanya started talking solidified. "And so…" she prompted, urging Tanya to finish.

"And so what?" Tanya asked, "I left. I couldn't get involved with her, not with my mate out their somewhere. I'm still trying to convince Edward that he could be the one…"

The pale blonde vampire shook her head and placed it in her hands. "Oh Tanya," she moaned, "What have you done?"

"What do you mean?"

Irina sighed and walked to the refrigerator, pulling a few packs of human blood out that she had stored away. "Tanya I need you to drink these," she said, handing them to her older sister.

The older vampire looked at the blood in distain, "You know I don't drink human blood anymore Irina."

"I know you don't, but trust me, you need this."

"I don't know how this will help," Tanya said, "And I don't know what this has to with my problem."

"Just drink the blood Tanya."

Tanya looked suspiciously at the packets of blood. "How much am I supposed to drink?"

"Just keep drinking until I tell you to stop." Irina ripped open one of the packets and grabbed hold of her coven leader's head, forcing the blood down her throat. "Stop stalling and just drink it."

The strawberry blonde rolled her eyes and started drinking the blood. Irina forced her sister to drink 8 pints of blood before allowing her to stop. "Oooh," Tanya moaned, "I don't feel well, I feel kind of sloshy. What is this supposed to do for me?"

"Just wait a few minutes," Irina said, "It takes a long time for animal blood to dull the instincts, but it only takes a few minutes for human blood to wake them back up again."

"What do you mean dull the inst-" Tanya started, before a pulsing pain shook her very being. "What is that?" She hissed out, gritting her teeth against the pain.

"Your instincts and senses are waking back up again," Irina said, "It's why I continue to drink human blood. Animal blood dilutes them slowly over time since it isn't what we as vampires are meant to drink. It's painful for you because your instincts rushing back full force and you aren't used to them."

"If I could remember what a hangover felt like, this would probably be close," Tanya continued to hiss, holding her head. The pain subsided and Tanya started to breathe easier. Just as she started to feel better, another pain entered her being, stemming from her unbeating heart. "What?" Tanya gasped out, her eyes a deep crimson red, realizing what the pulsing pain meant and the pain whenever she tried to be intimate with anyone else. "My mate… Please Irina, please tell me that I did not leave my mate after she confessed her love for me?" Tanya sobbed, overwhelming sadness crushing into her.

Irina nodded sadly, tears in her eyes for her sister. "I'm sorry Tanya," she whispered.

"Why?" Tanya yelled, "Why couldn't I feel anything?! Why couldn't I feel the mating bond?"

"The mating bond when it first forms is instinctual. You did feel it on some level though, you were attracted to her, and decided to pursue her."

Tanya started pacing, gnawing at her hand. "No no no," Tanya cried, placing her hands on both sides of her head, shaking, "When we finally had sex that last night, I was just looking for a good lay, a good fuck, but the look in Bella's eyes-" The strawberry blonde stopped, unable to finish.

"What?" Irina whispered, "What was in Bella's eyes?"

"She was making love to me," Tanya murmured, "Nobody has ever made love to me before, but I can tell now that that was what she was doing. She was glad to finally have her mate." She screamed out in frustration, sobbing. "She was building a relationship with me, wanting to make what we had real and not just something built on instinct. I am so stupid, how could I do that to her? Do that to anyone?"

"You left her, your mate, after she declared her love for you," the pale blonde vampire mused, "Even if she wasn't your mate, you still shouldn't have done that. What she must think of you now…"

"You're not helping!" Tanya yelled before resuming her pacing. "What do I do now?"

"You find her," Irina supplied, "And you spend the rest of your miserable vampire experience trying to make it up to her, and pray that she takes you back and forgives you."

"I don't deserve forgiveness," the strawberry blonde murmured, "Not after what I did, but I will try to find her and ask for it nonetheless, and spend my days trying to get back into her good graces…" She paused for a moment and turned to her sister, "By the way, how did you know all of this about human and animal blood anyway?"

Irina shrugged, "I don't know. All I know is around 50 years ago, I felt an odd sensation and then I realized that I couldn't feel as much as I remember I used to feel back in our hay day as succubae, when we practically bathed in blood. And if you recall, that is around the time I switched back to the human diet, only drinking the occasional bagged animal blood to keep my eyes from going completely red."

Tanya nodded, "Well I am never touching animal blood again. It has cost me too much already. While I don't much like the thought of killing humans, I'll kill thousands of humans if it means I could have my mate, my Bella back."

The pale blonde vampire placed her hand on her sister's arm sympathetically. "How are you going to find her?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

"Why not go to the Volturi, they do have the best tracker in the world."

Tanya shook her head. "Bella was afraid of the Volturi, afraid they would find out about her power and make her join them. No, I think it's best if I start where it began, in Australia. I'll scour the continent looking for her. Will you tell the others where I've gone?"

Irina nodded, "Good luck sister. If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask for it."

"Thank you Irina, for everything," Tanya said before dashing out of the door. She reached the Alaskan coastline and jumped into the ocean, too impatient to wait for a flight to Australia. She had a mate to find, and the swim down their would give her time to think of a way to make it up to her precious Isabella.

* * *

**So, there you have it. Tanya is now in the know. I know, it was a little odd that she drinks human blood and suddenly she can just tell. From what I can tell, it takes a long time for a vampire to wean themselves off of human blood, and for their eyes to turn gold. I guess it really is kind of like a drug, so, thinking backwards, it would take no time at all for the effects of the "drug" to take hold of their system again. And as for Tanya knowing, well, the mating bond has formed, just now she can feel it and not just the side effects of rejecting it. It was really fast how that happened, but I kind of wanted her to start on her little quest of self-discovery, looking for her mate. *Spoiler alert* She won't find her in Australia, but all of you knew that because you know where Bella is, the one place that Tanya won't go... Ironic, isn't it...**

**Oh and if anyone has been paying attention to the timeline in the story, what happened 50 years ago to jump start Irina's instincts I wonder... Hmm, something for you to think and wonder about. Leave your reviews and tell me why you think that is significant. **

**Review**


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